Something More
by J.Dax
Summary: Uh, sorry for the late update? I know, how lame to keep ya'll waiting this long. In this chapter, it's finally over!. RemyRogue, PeterKitty, St.JohnWanda.
1. Don't tell us what?

Disclaimer: If I owned X-men don't you think I would have put a new episode up by now?  
  
(A/N: I think I've got a good plot for this story, the general version is the X-men and the Acolytes team up to stop Mesmero from getting the third key, in the meantime romance blooms for two of my favorite characters:)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue let her shields slip as the full moon rose high above the water.  
  
She was sitting on a dock just outside of Bayville, it was her third day out of medlab, and she had made it a point to become more isolated than before.  
  
But this was her time, she could let out the scared, broken, shattered young girl, that hid behind the strong, determined, independent Goth.  
  
Rogue let her silver tears flow free and silent as fresh wounds and bad memories flooded her mind, she thought about Trask's lab, how the guards beat her, when they put that restraining collar on her to hold back her powers, some of them even raped her.  
  
She had been put in a different area than Logan, Evan, and Fred, none of them new what had happened to her, and she never told them.  
  
Rogue was balled up, clutching her knees to her chest, as if to protect herself from the awful things that they put her through.  
  
She squinted her eyes shut and tried to cover her bleeding heart with her barriers, she still had the physical bruises, she'd thought that Mr. McCoy would have found them after all the time he'd spent examining her, but he hadn't and they were still there.  
  
She refused to get treatment, she didn't want to tell them how she'd gotten such horrible scars.  
  
Rogue touched her forearm and felt the amateur dressing she had placed on it, she rolled up her sleeve and saw the dry blood on the white strip, it was from one of their restraints, a piece of leather with knife-like metal lining on both sides, it was pulled tighter and tighter with her every rebellious remark.  
  
Her tears increased as she let her sleeve slide back down, she had been their pet, she had lost dignity and control, she was violated.  
  
And now she was drowning, drowning in a sea of pain and sense of loss, and there was no lifeline, she had pushed everyone away, no one was there for her when she needed them, she was drowning, and would soon be washed away, there was no hope of getting out.  
  
Rogue didn't hear the voice, only the turbulent waves, but she felt his presence, felt his arms wrap around her, felt his genuine concern.  
  
A rock appeared in her sea, a lifeline, she clung to it with all her strength, then she heard the voice over the waves.  
  
"What's wrong, Cher`e?"  
  
She looked up into his red on black eyes, he was safety and danger, he was comfort and hurt, he was a gamble and a sure thing, should she risk telling him, allow herself to be vulnerable?  
  
"They raped me" it was barely above a whisper, but it cut through Gambit like a bullet, "They beat me, Ah couldn't make them go away, Ah couldn't stop them"  
  
Rogue clung to him and cried into his shoulder, he held her with all his might, "Who?" he asked, he had to know, he would kill whoever did this to her, he would beat them senseless and kill them, never had Remy LeBeau felt so much hate towards anything in his life.  
  
"Trask's men" Rogue managed to get out, she felt him tense, "No" she whispered, "You can't do anything about it" she tightened her grip on the front of his shirt, "Don't leave me"  
  
Remy relaxed and began to stroke her hair, "I won't, Cher`e" he started whispering soothingly in French, his mask, like hers was now off.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
"Where's your little Southern sheila?" St. John taunted as he faced Warren Worthington in their pre-battle insult exchange.  
  
"Where's your little Cajun thief?" Angel shot back, the X-men and the Acolytes were at it for the third time, this fight was over if they should remain enemies during the whole Apocalypse thing, or, join forces.  
  
Of course the adults had already decided to join forces, this little battle was going on without their knowledge.  
  
Scott 'I'm-in-charge' Summers, had picked a dock just outside of Bayville, without the rest of the team's consent, so the fight could take place where no one would see.  
  
"Shove it you two" Colossus said, "Let's just get this over with" the tall Russian looked extremely bored, he didn't notice that Kitty was making dreamy eyes at him, "Like, yea you guys, shove it" although she didn't seem to be in much of a hurry.  
  
"Hey, uh, people, I think we got a situation on out hands" Bobby was standing behind a huge storage crate, looking at something that the others couldn't see with all the other boxes in their way.  
  
"What is it, Popsicle" Rhane asked, she came up behind him, "Oh.My." she was so surprised she couldn't even finish her sentence, "Well we found Rogue, and Gambit"  
  
The others came over, jaws hit the ground, gasps and, "What the hells?!" were heard. There was two of their strongest teammates, clinging to each other like there was no tomorrow.  
  
Rogue was crying and clutching Remy's shirt, Remy had his arms wrapped around her, he was stroking her hair and muttering stuff in French, she seemed to understand because she nodded every once in a while.  
  
Every person that was witnessing this scene was in a daze, eyes wide and unbelieving, it was the girls who recovered first and began to whisper, "That is, like, so sweet" "How romantic, how tragically romantic" "Oh, they make such a cute couple"  
  
Jean sighed contentedly and rested her head on Scott's shoulder, none of the boys made a move, they were too shocked.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
It was about a half an hour before Rogue pulled away from Gambit, and even then she still held onto him.  
  
Remy brushed a strand of white hair behind her ear, "You feeling well enough to walk home, Cher`e?"  
  
She was about to reply yes, but she didn't trust her weak body, "Ah'm not sure" Gambit nodded and stood up, making her lean on him, "You look too tired, Petite, Remy'll take you back"  
  
She would've smiled, but a feeling of drowsiness overtook her first, she slumped against him.  
  
He scooped her up in his arms, she was still awake enough to wrap her arms around his neck and whisper, "Don't tell the others"  
  
He kissed her on the forehead where her bangs covered her skin, "My lips are sealed, Cher`e" she gave a half smile and fell into a blissful slumber.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
"Don't tell us what?" Jamie asked, Ray made a gagging face, "Probably that they're 'In love'" he made a mock girlish voice and clasped his hands together while batting his eyes.  
  
Bobby slapped him upside the head, "No you idiot, did those two look like they were in la la land? Rogue's hurting and she won't tell us why, she's only pouring her heart out to Gambit"  
  
"Like, he's totally right" Kitty agreed, "She obviously feels closer to Gambit than she does the rest of us at the moment, and I don't think that's, like, good"  
  
"You are right, Kitty, it's not good" everyone turned to see Ororo, Logan, Magneto, Hank, and the Professor.  
  
"But we can evaluate Rogue's well being latter. Scott I am disappointed in you, you should not have let your anger over cloud your better judgment" said the Professor, "We have already decided to join together as a stronger team to stop Mesmero from getting the other key, there was no need for the brawl that might have taken place tonight"  
  
Scott bowed his head, "Oooo, teacher's pet got a whipping" Taby whispered, only for the others to hear, but Wolverine's enhanced hearing picked up the comment, he chuckled along with the kids.  
  
"Now I believe it's time for us to go home" Ororo shot Logan a look, he just shrugged and gave her a puppy dog face, her expression softened, no one notice this exchange save the Professor who had to smile to himself as they proceeded to the cars.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Well whatcha think? Review please, and I hope you enjoy the next chapter) 


	2. Rebel

Remy arrived at the mansion just as the others were pulling into the driveway, he was quick enough to pick the lock on the door and get inside before getting caught in the headlights of the X-van.  
  
He made his way up to Rogue and Kitty's room, being careful not to disturb the still sleeping girl in his arms.  
  
He set Rogue on her bed, he guessed it was hers from the way that side of the room was decorated, all punk-rock and Goth, it clashed terribly with the side of the room that was all pop-hip hop and Valley girl.  
  
Rogue woke up as soon as he set her down, she opened her mouth to say something but he put a gloved finger on her parted lips, "Get some rest, everyone's home already, I'll take care of the explaining"  
  
She closed her eyes and a hint of a smile played at the corners of her mouth, he had to get out of there quickly to keep from kissing her, *Damn, Cher`e* he chuckled to himself, *Why do have to look so good? You got this Cajun wrapped around your finger*  
  
Remy headed back downstairs, doing his best not to think about what Rogue had said Trask did to her, after all he had been part of the reason why she ended up in that hell hole, and now it was tearing him apart.  
  
"Where's the kid, bub?" the question was followed by a low growl as Wolverine stepped in front if him and shot out his claws, Gambit wasn't in the least bit surprised, being the master thief that he was, he always had at least part of his concentration on observing all the movements around him.  
  
"The femme be asleep, mon ami" Remy answered without missing a beat, he had his smooth, cocky attitude back, it was a natural transition for him, 'never let 'em see you sweat' it was one of the many rules that was trained into him as a child.  
  
Logan was about to threaten the handsome Cajun, like he did every other man that even looked at Rogue the wrong way, but Ororo cut him off, "I am sure Rogue's fine"  
  
Her voice was gentle yet stern as her and Logan exchanged glares, he grunted and retracted his claws, "I'll be watchin' you, Gumbo"  
  
The older mutant walked out of the room and Storm followed with her arms crossed, it looked as if she was planning to give him a lecture away from where the students could hear, *Don't know how much lecturing she'll get in with all the passion that's flyin' between those two* Remy thought with a smirk, he could sense it even without his empathy.  
  
"Maybe you would like to tell us where Rogue and you were" it was more of a statement than a question, and surprisingly enough it had come from Magneto, he saw the expectant expressions all of the students were giving him, but he knew they already knew, they just wanted to see if he was gonna lie.  
  
"Me and the belle were at that dock outside of town, though I don't think I should tell you what we were doing with such young children present" he grinned wickedly, he noticed the blond guy with the wings was giving him a jealous/angry kind of look, Remy gave a mental chuckle, *So the Angel's got a crush, huh? I could have fun with this*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue dragged herself out of bed early the next morning and was the first in the bathroom, *Thank God!* she thought, *I'm finally gonna get a hot shower*  
  
She stepped into the tub after stripping and taking her bandages off, she didn't even wince as she scrubbed the dried blood away, she was reflexively pushing the bad memories of her confinement out of her mind.  
  
That's how she protected herself, she just didn't think about the bad stuff, she dealt with the pain for as long as she could stand, then pushed it away as the water danced across her skin and she took her time to soak in it's warmth.  
  
It was Saturday so she didn't have to worry about training session till this afternoon, and no school, *This just might turn out to be a good day after all*  
  
When she was done with her shower she got dressed and rushed downstairs only to find a kitchen full of men, *Damn, maybe not* it was bad enough she had to deal with Kitty every morning, try a room of untamed, rowdy, act- like-I'm-on-a-sugar-high mutant boys.  
  
St. John, Bobby, Kurt, Ray, Roberto, Jamie, Sam, Remy, and Warren, *No Logan, no Ororo, not even Colossus? Guess all the sane ones decided to sleep in today*  
  
The kitchen was loud and energetic, St. John and Bobby were fighting over the last bowl of Cinnamon toast Crunch, Bobby kept trying to freeze Pyro's hands but the Australian always melted his attempts in mid-air.  
  
Kurt had obviously made off with Ray's breakfast because he was bamfing around the kitchen while Berzerker was yelling for him to come back.  
  
Someone's toast popped up and both Sam and Roberto lunged for it, knocking over Jamie in the process causing seven more little clone boys to appear.  
  
Rogue maneuvered her way around the seven fighting teens and managed to get to the fridge without being frozen, burned or bumped.  
  
"So, the lovely Petite decided to honor us with her presence this morning" Remy said, handing her a glass before she could even think about reaching one, she smiled her thanks and allowed a slight blush though it couldn't be seen through her make up.  
  
She poured herself some orange juice and sat down across from Warren, "What are ya'll doing up so early?"  
  
"Too many people living in one place, guess we thought it'd be easier eating in shifts" Angel answered, Rogue giggled, "Yea, that's really helped" she said in a sarcastic voice, motioning to Pyro, Iceman, Cannonball, and Multiple.  
  
*Kurt and Ray must've taken it to the living room*  
  
Warren just shrugged and smiled, "Well it's worth it now that you're here" Rogue blushed again, *What is with this, two compliments within five minutes of each other* she gave herself a mental bash, *They're just being friendly, geez you're getting lonelier* this line of thinking erased the rest of her good mood, "Better get ready for Danger Room session" she commented out loud, plastering on a smile and finishing off her drink.  
  
"Something wrong, Cher`e?" Remy asked, concern in his voice, Rogue brushed his question off, "Of course not" she lied and headed back to her room.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy frowned as he watched Rogue go, he sensed the change in her mood, she had been playful and a bit happy one minute, witch he knew was rare for her, then about two minutes after Warren's comment she had turned back into isolated Goth mode.  
  
Suddenly the kitchen was flooded with people, Gambit discreetly left before anyone noticed him.  
  
He found Rogue at the top of the staircase, "Thought you were getting ready for the Danger Room" he said coming to sit beside her, she shrugged and twisted her gloved fingers together.  
  
*Something's definitely making her upset* he thought, he waited, that's the only thing he could do, he had seen his mother comfort people so many times, and she said the best thing to do is wait, let them come to you.  
  
This was a whole new tactic for Remy, he'd never waited for anything in his life, he just reached out and grabbed it, but he already knew Rogue well enough to know you couldn't push the girl to do anything she didn't want to, she was way to stubborn for that.  
  
And there was something nagging at him that he would not admit to himself, he didn't want to hurt Rogue, he cared about her too much, although he chose to ignore the fact. After a few minutes Gambit got impatient with her silence, "If there's something bothering you, you can talk to me about it, Cher`e"  
  
"Ah'm fine" Rogue said, her voice not betraying any emotion, she got up and went to her room.  
  
"Merde" Remy muttered as soon as she closed the door.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue could've killed herself right at that moment, *Well you can add him to the list of people who are 'just-trying-to-help'!* she yelled inside her mind.  
  
*Why did you go and do a stupid thing like that last night, he's your enemy for crying out loud! You let him in and now he's just gonna pester you for a while and betray you like everyone else in your life!*  
  
Rogue picked up one of her CDs, she needed music to keep from throwing something, she hit play on her radio and cranked the volume, Avril Lavigne began to play, she flipped through the tracks until she found the beat that fit her mood best.  
  
_ All I did was walk over  
  
Start off by shakin' your hand  
  
Had a smile on my face  
  
And I sat up straight  
  
I wanted to know you  
  
I wanted to show you  
  
You don't know me  
  
Don't ignore me  
  
You don't want me there  
  
You just shut me out  
  
You don't know me  
  
Don't ignore me  
  
If you had your way you'd just shut me up  
  
Make me go away You don't know me  
  
No I just don't understand why you wont talk to me  
  
It hurts  
  
I'm so unwanted for nothing  
  
Don't talk words against me  
  
You don't know me  
  
Don't ignore me  
  
You don't want me there  
  
You just shut me out  
  
You don't know me  
  
Don't ignore me  
  
If you had your way you'd just shut me up  
  
Make me go away  
  
I tried to belong it didn't seem wrong  
  
My head aches  
  
It's been so long I write this song  
  
If that's what it takes_  
  
"Turn that frigging thing down!" yelled Logan from the hallway, Rogue wanted to bump it up a notch instead, just to be rebellious, but she didn't want to get grounded so she shut the music off all together.  
  
She still felt upset though, she had done enough mental beating to last the day, her scolding half decided to take a break for a while.  
  
Rogue wanted to do something to forget, forget everything for the moment, she glanced at her clock, session started in three hours, *I could be back by then* she thought with a smile, she was too angry to deal with people right now anyway.  
  
She might end up seriously injuring someone if she went downstairs in this mood, *I wonder if my contacts are still good*  
  
Rogue went to her closet and pulled out a tight black, leather jacket, she slipped it on over her black shirt and grabbed some spiked bracelets from her top dresser drawer.  
  
She spared a glance in the mirror and smiled, weaving a studded belt through the loops of the black stretch pants that flared out slightly around her ankles, she had only worn this outfit a couple of times, mostly to get fake I.D., that was only when she was in an extremely bad mood.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Awwww, yes, I am evil, he he he he he, so tell me what you think, but before you say it I know I'm making Rogue's character have constant mood swings, I figure that's what happens when her barriers are down and she's trying to get them back up (like that'll happen with Gambit around;) 


	3. minscape

Bobby looked up as Gambit came into the kitchen, "What'd you say to Rogue?" Remy kept a smooth composure, "Why do you want to know?"  
  
"Because she never plays her music that loud unless something is really, deeply, emotionally, bothering her" Drakes answered, "I didn't say anything" Remy replied, sitting down next to St. John, bad move.  
  
"Remy's got it bad for that shiela, don't ya' mate?" the red head didn't wait for the Cajun to say anything, "Real shame she can't touch, got some nice curves, loved to get my hands on her"  
  
Gambit started to fume, before he knew what hit him, Pyro was on the floor, mouth bleeding.  
  
Remy pinned him down, his demon eyes flashing, a dangerous smirk on his face, "It's disrespectful to talk about a femme like that" he slipped a card out of his pocket and charged it near St. John's throat, "'Specially a femme I'm starting to feel protective of"  
  
Pyro chuckled nervously, "Harmless joke, mate, ain't no reason to get upset" Gambit slowly backed off once he was sure his message had gotten across.  
  
Everyone else in the kitchen was either amused or stunned by this display, some just acted as if it were an everyday thing.  
  
Then Rogue walked in and things became a tad more intriguing, she was garbed fully in black, and was even wearing a pair of shades over her eyes.  
  
"Where ya' goin', Stripes?" Wolverine asked coming in behind her, he didn't seem in the least surprised at her choice of clothing, "Ah was thinkin' Ah would do somethin' useful with my spare time and go visit some old friends" her accent came out thick, she pushed her sunglasses down slightly.  
  
A spark of mystery, challenge, and danger lurked in her emerald eyes, this caught the attention of most of the males, Gambit reached out with his empathy to see if he could get more info, but she had a firm clamp on her shields, "Ah promise to be back by the time training session starts"  
  
Logan gave her a once over before nodding his approval, "Fine, don't get yourself into trouble" she flicked her glasses back up and went to the garage, more than a few gazes on her.  
  
"What just happened?" Roberto asked the question that was on everyone's mind, they all turned to Logan expectantly, "You wanna know, ask the kid, but she'll probably kill you if you do"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------- Rogue looked at her vehicle selection, *Let's see, Wolvie's bike, Scott's car.Oooo, wait a minute*  
  
"That's a nice one" she said out loud, eyeing the unfamiliar motorcycle on the far end of the garage, "Yea, and it's mine" Rogue turned around to see Gambit standing there.  
  
"Mind if Ah take it for a spin, sugah" it wasn't a question, "How are you gonna start it up without the keys?" he asked, just to see what she would do.  
  
He knew she probably rolled her eyes behind her shades, "Ah loved to stay here and chat, but Ah've got some business to attend to" she walked over to his bike and pulled something out from the cuff of her glove.  
  
*Classic* he thought with a smirk, within seconds she had the engine running and was off, but not before shooting a smug smile in his direction.  
  
*She's got style* he grinned, her attitude was enticing, he was tempted to follow her, but didn't think that'd sit well with her or Logan, so he went back into the house and waited.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Halfway to her destination Rogue was having second thoughts, it had been a while since she'd pulled these kind of strings, and her bad mood was starting to wear off due to her mood swings, *Why does everything have to be so confusing? I feel like an empty shell, nothing's stickin' to my brain, Aaaaaaaagggghhhhhh!*  
  
Rogue swerved to a stop, thankfully she was on a back road so there was hardly anything you could call trafic, she got off the motorbike and leaned it against the wall of an abandoned warehouse.  
  
She sat down, tilted her head back, and closed her eyes, "Ah can't think like this" she said to the wind, running a frustrated hand through her hair.  
  
She cleared her head, trying to recede into her subconscious, in a few moments she was in her mindscape, random images floated around her, "*Well at least Ah know why Ah've been having mood swings now*"  
  
All her memories were scattered and mixed together, it was probably due to the Professor erasing the personalities of the people she'd absorbed, she was used to everything being organized, either filed away, locked up, or put into easy access categories.  
  
That was the type of system she had developed so she wouldn't get her psyche mixed up with one of the people in her head.  
  
The bad thing was that her mind played a huge part in her emotional state, when Xavier had taken the other people out of her head, her structures had come loose, causing her to feel the emotion she had felt at a different time for a different reason.  
  
Rogue sighed, it would take a while to clean up, she guessed about a week without the assistance of a telepath, and with her mental shields in their weakened state Lord knows she didn't want Jean or the Prof. lurking around in here.  
  
Rogue assessed the damage one last time before pulling back into the world around her, she glanced at Remy's bike, then decided against going to her previous destination, instead she headed back for the Institute.  
  
*After training session I'll talk to the Professor about taking some time off from school so I can work on rebuilding my system*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue got back an hour before their Danger Room session, giving her enough time to change into her uniform and work out what she was gonna say to Xavier that would convince him to write her a permission slip for extra time off from school.  
  
She headed to the underground levels of the mansion and was one of the first to arrive for the pre-training briefing, she was surprised to see Bobby there, "Ah thought only the senior class was gonna be practicing today"  
  
"Didn't you hear?" Bobby answered, beaming with pride, "I graduated after helping on the last mission"  
  
Rogue rolled her eyes, "Just what we need, another psychotic male with an ego twice the size of Blob's stomach" a few snickers were heard from around the observation booth.  
  
Bobby just smiled and stepped closer to her with a mock I'm-hot-and-you- know-it air, "Admit it, you like having me here, baby" Rogue smirked with barely contained laughter, "Baby? Oh that's so original, don't mean to disappoint you kid, but you're too young for my taste" she ruffled his hair and went to stand beside Kitty to wait for the others.  
  
The Valley girl could be annoying at times, but her and Rogue were like sisters, and surprisingly enough Kitty could hold an intelligent conversation, not that the Goth had ever doubted her friend's mental capacity, it had just seemed a little daunting after she found out she was actually able to have a real talk with the girl when she'd first come to the mansion.  
  
"So where'd you go?" Kitty asked in a low voice so no one else would hear if Rogue answered the question, "No where, just took a spin" that was true, she didn't really go anywhere.  
  
"Did you take Mr. Logan's bike again?" it was a smooth switch in the line of questioning, only the two of them would notice, it was kind of like speaking your own language, they could both tell when it was and wasn't the time to press the matter.  
  
So they would move on to another part of the topic that seemed to be headed in the same direction, but was on another path of converse entirely.  
  
"Nope, Ah took the Cajun's" Rogue had to smile at Kitty's surprise, "Like, he totally has a motorcycle? How hot can that guy, like, get"  
  
Rogue snorted, "Ah was thinking more along the lines of cooling him down" she said with a hint of sarcasm, Kitty giggled, "What's the matter, I thought you liked your food spicy"  
  
Rogue was about to threaten the girl into taking that comment back when the Acolytes and the rest of the senior team walked in, not wanting any of the heavy rumor makers to get a load of what they were talking about she just gave Kitty a smile that said: "Ah'll get you back for that latter"  
  
"Now that you are all here" the Professor began, "I will proceed to explain today's exercise, you will be split into two groups, each group will consist of the people that theoretically compliment each other's powers best.  
  
"However we will be switching the members of the teams around every session so we can see how strongly you are able to work together.  
  
"Mr. Logan, please fill them in on the object of this session and who will be on who's team"  
  
Wolverine grunted and stepped further into everyone's view, "It's simple, kinda like tag only with better hiding places, the two teams will tackle their counterparts and keep 'em pinned down for about twenty seconds, eliminating that member.  
  
"The team that has successfully eliminated the other team wins, since the elf and half-pint are near impossible to get a hold of, Stripes is aloud to absorb them but no one else"  
  
Rogue tensed a bit, she didn't think they'd have her absorb someone this soon, much less her closest friend and older brother.  
  
Wolverine must've sensed her uneasiness because he shot her a sympathetic look, "Alright, Iceman, Gambit, Shadowcat, Nightcrawler, and Jean Grey will be team number one, Rogue, Pyro, Colossus, Cyclops, and Angel, team number two. Let's go"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Yaaaa, cliffhanger ^_^ I bet your just dying to find out what happens during DR session, aren't you? Sorry, you'll have to wait till the next chappy, but I should have that up soon:) 


	4. Danger Room session

The lights in the metallic room came on overhead, it looked like the simulation of a warehouse, boxes and shelves everywhere, spread out enough in the middle for decent fighting space.  
  
St. John crept along behind a row of boxes, waiting for Bobby to get closer, suddenly he shot out flames and shaped them into a vicious tiger, making the fiery beast pounce on the ice boy.  
  
It caught Bobby off guard, but only for a second, he shot a bolt of ice at the creature, who dispersed and reformed into a eagle, flying around over Iceman's head until getting close enough to land on his shoulder, it might have burnt him if he hadn't been in ice-form.  
  
"Ha, nice try" Bobby taunted Pyro, "I don't see you doin' much better, mate" the Australian retorted, realizing that using fire against the boy wasn't an option, he did create a whirlwind of flames for a distraction, though, while he tackled Bobby from behind.  
  
Iceman managed to get free of his grip and grabbed hold of St. John's wrists, icing them to the floor, the speaker overhead started to blare out the seconds that Pyro was down.  
  
But Bobby didn't notice there was still some fire loose and Pyro manipulated it over to his frosty binds, melting them away and jumping to his feat, the voice over the speaker stopped at thirteen seconds, "What do ya' know, I beat my own record for escape time"  
  
Iceman frowned and squirted a sheet of ice in Pyro's direction, St. John shot a sheet of fire right back, his fire could only melt so much at a time though, so it continued like this for a while, ice and fire trying to cancel each other out, but never getting past the point where they met.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Mean while Piotr Rasputan, known as Peter to his American friends, was trying to catch Kitty Pryde, who kept phasing through his metal form.  
  
She smiled teasingly as he chased after her, thinking the whole time how cute he was and how she was sooooo over Lance.  
  
Kitty hopped on top of a crate, waiting for him to get closer, she knew he was trying to sneak up behind her, she crossed her legs and began to study her nails, feigning boredom.  
  
She counted every second off in her head, until finally he reached out to grab her, she giggled and did a backwards summersault, phasing right through him.  
  
"Had enough?" she asked, doing a little victory dance, he grunted and folded his arms, she grinned, "You know you look, like, so totally handsome when you're annoyed"  
  
Colossus blushed, Kitty didn't see it, but she knew he had when she saw the change in his expression, *Oooooo, like, how sweet*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy couldn't believe how dense Cyclops was, he was practically on top of him and Summers was looking around the shelves like some kid lost in a department store.  
  
The Cajun couldn't understand why they had named him leader, he was completely unaware and un-alert, Remy slipped three cards out from his trench coat and charged them.  
  
He leaned forward from his hiding place and expertly aimed the cards so they would land in a triangle around his opponent, Scott looked up in surprise, Gambit smirked, "It's 'bout time, mon ami"  
  
He jumped down as the cards exploded and tackled Summers to the ground, Cyclops was able to blast the shelf behind Remy so it would fall on the thief's back, but Remy predicted the action and rolled them both out of the way just in time, still managing to hold Scott down.  
  
The speaker over head began to count, and soon one eye was out of the game, Gambit shook his head and smiled, "Now to go find me a real challenge" he reached out with his spatial sense and located Rogue.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue was crouching behind some crates near Jean Grey, *Can't wait to take this one out* she thought with a smirk, Jean couldn't read through her mental shields, so she didn't detect Rogue's presence until the Goth was only a few feet away.  
  
But Rogue kept herself hidden extremely well during Jean's mind sweep, while the telepath was looking in the other direction Rogue jumped off a crate and tackled her.  
  
Jean put up a telekinetic barrier that forced the girl off her, Rogue fought the barrier with her own mind, she could penetrate it somewhat, but she wasn't telepath so she couldn't push it all the way back.  
  
It was hardly a minute before Rogue's head started to pound hard with her effort, she finally gave up and dodged through a weak point in the shield while Jean got her bearings.  
  
Before Jean knew it she was being pinned to the ground, and the speaker blared out her time, since she was on her stomach and Rogue was pulling her hands behind her back, it was going to be a hard escape.  
  
Rogue tensed as the voice over the speaker got to five seconds, she didn't know it would be this easy to get Jean down, she was still sure the girl might try something.  
  
Finally the time was up, she let go of the older mutant and stood up, "Oh, c'mon you hardly put up a fight" the Goth complained, "That's kind of hard to do when you've got my hands pulled so tightly behind my back they go numb"  
  
Rogue frowned and folded her arms, "You're a telepath, all you need is your brain, you still could've pushed against the concrete with telekinetic force"  
  
Jean didn't reply, she just gave her hair an arrogant toss and walked towards Danger Room doors, Rogue made a gagging face, "She makes me sick"  
  
"Not a good thing to say about your superior" Warren commented, swooping down beside her, Rogue snorted, "Superior, in what way? She's seventeen with the combat intelligence of a five-year-old, not to mention her I'm- popular-so-do-whatever-I-say attitude, wouldn't matter if she had the I.Q. of a cockroach, she'd still be "get whatever I want" teacher's pet"  
  
Angel smiled, "You're cute when you're angry" Rogue gave him her infamous 'Death Glare', it only made him smile wider.  
  
"I need your help taking Nightcrawler out" he motioned to some shelves a few yards away, "I could fly you up then dive bomb, and you zap him out on the way down"  
  
Rogue nodded, "Good plan" she slipped a glove off and Warren wrapped one arm around her waist and one closer to her knees, Rogue grinned as they flew up, she would never in a million years admit it, but she was enjoying this position immensely.  
  
Kurt soon came into her view, he was hanging upside down on one of the shelves, watching St. John and Bobby battle it out below him.  
  
Angel went up a little higher, then did a semi-flip and dove straight down, Rogue yanked Nightcrawler's arm on their descent, they gained speed and the blue elf was out in seconds, she let go of him and caught him in her covered arms.  
  
Rogue sensed something was wrong as the ground got near and Angel didn't pull up, "Damnit" she heard him curse.  
  
He wrapped he wings fully around her and Kurt and told her to be prepared for a hard landing, she closed her eyes when they hit the ground.  
  
A few barrel rolls latter they came to a stop, Rogue opened her eyes and felt Warren's arms and wings still around her, she looked up at him, "You okay?"  
  
He winced, "Never been better" they pulled apart and stood up, Nightcrawler was just starting to come out of unconsciousness, Angel took him and flew him out the Danger Room doors, then came back in to see if he could help Pyro beat Bobby.  
  
Rogue sat on top of one of the boxes and inspected her injuries, making sure none of them had reopened, then she leaned back on one hand and used the other to massage her neck witch had cramped during their crash landing.  
  
Suddenly Rogue tensed and her senses became alert, she felt a presence near her, she reflexively got into fighting position, Gambit emerged from the shadows, shuffling a deck of cards.  
  
Their gazes locked and Rogue couldn't help put be entranced by the look in his eyes, it was playful, dangerous, and challenging, her mind instantly sent off a warning signal when her body reacted.  
  
She narrowed her eyes devilishly, basically saying "Come closer" and "Back off" all at once, he came closer, *What else did you expect?* she asked herself in amusement.  
  
She wondered how she was gonna tackle him, he was unpredictable, if she kicked his legs out from under him and pinned him down, he could charge more than the cards.  
  
But if she was able to get behind him and pull his hands behind his back, that might just work, *Alright, Cajun, lets dance*  
  
Rogue stepped forward, ready to play his game, he smiled and with a flick of his wrist, the deck of cards that had been in his hand disappeared.  
  
He wrapped an arm around her waist, *Try'n to catch me off guard? Sorry, it'll take a lot more than that to make this girl swoon* she matched his smile and slid her gloved hands up his chest, he wasn't expecting that she knew, though he never showed his surprise.  
  
Rogue decided to beat him to the punch and put a finger under his chin, she could tell he was amused if not enjoying this display.  
  
Wham, the boy never knew what hit him, she had him on his stomach in a matter of seconds and his hands behind his back.  
  
But he was physically stronger and soon overpowered her, rolling over and pinning her arms down, she frowned, "Huh, no fair, Swamp Rat" she stuck her tongue out rather childishly at him, he chuckled, "Keep looking so hot and I may keep you in this position longer"  
  
She frowned and attempted to struggle out of his grasp, she didn't know how but she managed to loosen his hold and get away just before her time ran out. She was pinning him again, but he wasn't trying to get away, she was fully aware of how close they were and did her best to ignore the chill that ran down her spine when she felt his warm breath on her neck.  
  
It seemed like an eternity before he was officially eliminated, she got up as quick as she could and watched him walk out with a grin on his face, as soon as he was out of sight she shivered, *Damn, Swamp Rat*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
By the end of the session, Colossus and Rogue were the only ones left, Rogue and Warren had taken out Kitty, then Bobby had taken out Warren, then Colossus had taken out Bobby.  
  
Logan grunted his approval, "Good job, Stripes" she smiled and slapped high fives with Pyro and Angel, then everyone, save Rogue, filed out of the observation booth, she lingered behind to talk to the Professor.  
  
"What is it, Rogue?" he asked, steepling his fingers, "Ah was wondering if Ah could have another week off school" she didn't give him time to say anything before continuing.  
  
"Ah've got to take care of something and it's really important, it would help me gain a better emotional balance and it might guarantee that Ah never break down again" she held her breath, waiting for his reply.  
  
He considered it for a moment, "I am not sure, your grades weren't doing very well to begin with and you've already missed two weeks"  
  
"Yea, but all the anti-mutant teachers were gonna fail me even if Ah was doing good, and Ah'll be out of High school for good in a couple more months" she was practically begging him, she didn't want to keep having these mood swings, and dealing with too many people at once would just make them worse.  
  
"Fine" he relented, Rogue thanked him and rushed to her room, glad something was finally going her way.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: You're probably wondering by now how I managed to get five chapters up in one day, well I've been working on this fic for a while and just now got around to posting it:) 


	5. sorting through

When Monday came around Rogue waited till all the other students had left for school.  
  
She locked the door to her room and opened the window, she cleared a space in front of it and sat Indian style, letting the slight breeze brush against her neck.  
  
She closed her eyes and concentrated, retracting into her subconscious, she saw her memories still randomly floating and occasionally surfacing.  
  
Rogue grabbed the nearest one, it was of her and Risty, they were hanging out on a Saturday night, rebels without a cause, just talking and making fun of the preps.  
  
She forced herself not to cry, "*Damnit, you are over that*"  
  
She debated whether to put it in her easy access file or in her locked away cabinet, it might surface if she put it in her easy access file and thinking about Risty would lead to thinking about Mystique.  
  
Rogue had decided in the medlab that she would think of the two as totally separate people, it would help her cope with the betrayal, Risty was a good friend that was gone now, Mystique was the psychotic foster parent that wanted to take her place.  
  
She didn't care if Mystique had been Risty, Risty was the first person she'd ever considered a friend, even before Scott, and a friend deserved to be remembered, so she placed it in her easy access file and reached out for another memory.  
  
It was one of her and Irene, Rogue smiled sadly, now there was someone who could be called mother, she had taken care of Rogue, they had a nice little house in the country, no one to bother them, it was like a picket fence fairytale, that had lasted a year and a half.  
  
Then Mystique had ruined her smooth, carefree life, that evil woman had taken what was left of her innocence and broke it up into tiny little pieces, then threw it in her face.  
  
Rogue scowled, "*That lady wrecked the precious bit of good Ah had in my life and still calls herself my mother*" anger and pain grew in a strong surge, Rogue put the memory in her easy access file before she accidentally tore it apart from her sudden pulse of fury.  
  
A brick appeared in Rogue's hand, it was part of her destroyed barricade that would've kept these feelings at bay, she turned to see her shattered defense shields, there was one thing she could do that would help stop her mood swings and get her concentration back, rebuild her walls.  
  
She hesitated, even in her anger she wasn't about to rush into something that might make everything worse, she looked at the brick in her hand, if she did decide to rebuild her shields, she would have to use something more durable.  
  
A memory bumped her in the shoulder, she stood there as realization hit her, emotions, although not always predictable, could be the toughest force in the human mind.  
  
Rogue snatched a memory, her past and present was full of emotion, she could use her memories as a reinforced shield, she would have to be careful though, if something happened while she was building her barricades back up, it might cause another break down.  
  
She took another look around her mindscape, then realized that Kitty and Kurt's memories were there too, "*How could Ah forget?*" she would have to finish filing and organizing before she started on the walls, "*No problem, this should only take a few hours*" and she got back to work.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Kitty passed by a group cheerleaders who were whispering stuff like "Freak" and "She doesn't belong here"  
  
Kitty just held her head high and smiled as if to say: "I know something you don't" the cheerleaders huffed and went on their way.  
  
As soon as they were out of sight Kitty slumped against her locker and sighed, wishing Rogue were here, the Goth always knew how to shut preps like them up, sometimes Kitty just wanted to yell at them.  
  
"Hey, you're doing a good job so far" Kurt said as if reading her mind, he came and stood beside her, "Still, it, like, makes me so mad"  
  
Nightcrawler smiled, "C'mon, I'll valk you to lunch" he put an arm around her shoulders, but then Amanda suddenly raced up to him and they started up a conversation.  
  
Kitty watched as Amanda gave Kurt a kiss on the cheek, she hung her head and walked to lunch alone, she had been alone a lot lately, ever since Lance and her broke up.  
  
*Like, one minute my life was great, and now it totally sucks*  
  
She sat at the nearest bench and moped, her eyes wandered absently around until locking gazes with a certain avalanche making mutant, she sat a little straighter and narrowed her yes at him, she couldn't believe they had actually let the Brotherhood back in school.  
  
She saw his hurt expression, and for a moment she sympathized, but she quickly turned her eyes away, it was his fault, she didn't need to feel sorry, she was over him.  
  
Kitty thought back to the night after the battle and the break up, she had sobbed into her pillow when they got home, Rogue had sat on her bed and comforted her, "Lance is a jerk, it was his decision, you don't have to feel responsible for his actions" the Goth said.  
  
Kitty had sat up and hugged her friend, Rogue had been shocked at first, but returned the hug.  
  
*She's always there for us, but she wont let us be there for her* thinking about Rogue got her to stop thinking about Lance for the time being.  
  
A hand was placed on Kitty's arm, the girl jumped and almost phased, but when she saw who it was, she grinned, this would brighten her mood considerably, "Peter, what are you doing here?"  
  
The taller man smiled slightly, "I wanted to see how you were doing, that and Pyro was messing around near the stove"  
  
Kitty giggled, "I'm, like, glad you're here" they started talking and time seemed to fly by, at least for the Valley girl.  
  
At the other end of the campus Alvers was watching Kitty flirt big time with one of Magneto's goons, "What does she see in him anyway, he's looks old enough to be her grandfather" of course he was over exaggerating, using jealousy as an excuse to hide his pain.  
  
"Feeling a little threatened by Kitty-Kat's new boyfriend are we?" Pietro taunted, "Can it, Maximoff" Lance shot back, standing up and balling his fists, "Carefulyouhurtmemyfatherhurtsyou" the speedster said.  
  
Avalanche growled, tempted to bury the twerp under a few tons of rock, but he sat back down, knowing all too well what the consequence might be for that.  
  
He continued to watch, the minutes tick by so slowly, but he couldn't force himself to look away, *Welcome to the living hell you put yourself in*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Five hours had passed and Rogue had barely gotten through sorting a quarter of her memories, "*Maybe Ah should take a break*" she said this without any true intention of stopping, she wanted to get this done and she wanted to get it done as soon as possible.  
  
But something pushed her back into the real world anyway, she was starving, she hadn't eaten anything since yesterday morning and her stomach was protesting the harsh treatment.  
  
Rogue stood up to go downstairs, but she couldn't feel her numb legs from the extensive time she had been sitting in her meditating position, and almost immediately fell back down.  
  
She slammed against her nightstand, causing her lamp to fall off and shatter into a million pieces.  
  
Wolverine and Gambit were by her side in a flash, she guessed Logan must've busted her and Kitty's door again.  
  
"Damnit" she groaned, warding off their attempts to help her up, "Are you-" "Ah'm fine" she answered before Remy could finish his sentence, she pushed herself onto her bed and sat up.  
  
"What happened?" Logan asked, he couldn't smell that anyone had been up here besides Rogue, so it wasn't an attack, "Ah tripped" she said casually, biting back the pain that shot through her head.  
  
Rogue felt the circulation returning to her legs and then the assault of pins and needles, Logan and Gambit just stood there, she was about to tell them off when she noticed their surprised expressions.  
  
"What?" she asked, giving them a death glare, "Where's your make up, Stripes?" "Huh?" Rogue frowned, then remembered, she had wiped it off after the others left for school, "Ah didn't feel like wearing it today, got a problem with that?"  
  
It was a while before Gambit found his voice, "You look stunning, Cher`e" Rogue furrowed her eyebrows and looked at Logan, "Yea, you should quit wearing that crap all together" he said to her questioning glance.  
  
"Whatever, get your jaws off the floor and get out of here" *Geez, it's not like it's that big of a deal* Logan started to head out when he realized Remy was too entranced to follow him, "You heard her, Gumbo" he yanked the Cajun by the ear and through the door less exit.  
  
Rogue tried standing up again, this time she made it without falling, she really hated the fact that she would have to wait another whole day before proceeding with her rebuilding now that she had no way to get full privacy with her door torn off.  
  
She grinned, some part of her thought it was worth it, though, after seeing the look's on Gambit and Logan's faces, *I should've taken a picture to show Kitty, she would've died laughing*  
  
Rogue wondered how her friend was holding up, hopefully she wasn't feeling too lonely, *I saw the way she was looking at Colossus, she's definitely over Lance*  
  
Rogue resumed her quest for food and headed for the kitchen.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: These chapters aren't the longest in the world, but one week five chapters, go figure;) I hope to have the next few up soon, if you can wait a day or so, hpe you've liked it so far and please RnR!) 


	6. Couldn't stop them

Answer to Reviews: I agree that the affect of Rogue's confinement in Trask's lab would have been more traumatizing, but it's natural for her to push stuff like that out of her head until it comes back in a sudden rush and then she's forced to deal with it, that's what I'm planning on having done.  
  
About my Grammar, I could fix that but I don't really feel like it, not to offend anybody, if it annoys you the only thing I can suggest is stop reading.  
  
Also, the reason why Xavier gave in so easily to Rogue's request for some time of school is because he sensed she needed it and felt it would help her focus better.  
  
( A/N: Thanks for the fantastic reviews, love ya'll:)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Kitty got home from school in a better mood then when she had left, she bounced up to Rogue's and her room, phasing through Logan who was fixing their door.  
  
"Like, guess what happened" she said, plopping down next to Rogue, who was sitting on the floor, sketching in her art pad.  
  
"Sabertooth crashed the school and buried Principle Kelly alive?" the Goth asked with mock hopefulness.  
  
Kitty rolled her eyes, "No, Peter came by at lunch to, like, check up on me, isn't that, like, so sweet? And like why is Mr. Logan fixing our door again?"  
  
"Ah accidentally tripped and knocked a lamp over, he came barging in thinkin' it was an attack" "Oh, well, anyway" Kitty babbled on and Rogue tuned the girl out, concentrating on the picture she was drawing of Jamie, Rhane, and Amara.  
  
She had seen the three younger students walking out of the mansion yesterday with their arms linked, she thought it had made a cute picture and decided to draw it.  
  
She was just about finished sketching the mansion in the back round when something Kitty said caught her attention, "The Brotherhood's what?!"  
  
"They, like, let 'em back in school", Rogue groaned and leaned her head against her bed frame, "Maybe Ah should ask for another week off" Kitty stood up and tossed her homework on her own bed, "Oh no you don't, if I have to, like, put up with them, then so do you"  
  
Rogue continued with her drawing, "Ah think you'll have to keep me from making Pietro suffer a slow and painful death"  
  
Kitty put her hands on her hips, "Now why would I want to do that? I practically saved the guys life and all he can say is, like, that I'm slow, I could care less if the idiot died"  
  
Rogue smirked but didn't comment further.  
  
Kitty set to work on her math and a comfortable silence fell between the two, everything was calm until a few hours latter when Bobby called up the stairs, "DINNER'S READY!" then all hell broke loose.  
  
Hungry kids raced down the halls and staircases, using their powers and just about everything else to be the first ones at the table.  
  
Rogue and Kitty shared an amused glance, "Why don't we take a shortcut?" Rogue asked, grabbing Kitty's hand, the Valley Girl smiled and phased straight down, arriving in Kurt's room.  
  
Right before the blue boy was about to teleport into the dinning room, Kitty snatched his elbow and they ended up being the first ones to arrive, just as the rest of the students tumbled, burst, tripped, and flew through the door.  
  
"Alright!" Kurt gloated, wagging his tail triumphantly, "Da Fuzzy Von rocks" the others groaned, "Hey, don't, like, hog the glory, we got here first too" Kitty said.  
  
Everybody started taking seats while the grown ups supervised, making sure no fights broke out, Rogue saw Gambit coming over to her side of the table and prayed he wouldn't sit next to her.  
  
Fat chance.  
  
*Why, why, why?* she restrained herself from getting up and banging her head against a wall, at first she'd thought his flirtatious comments were just his way of being friendly, she could deal with that as long as he stayed at a safe distance.  
  
But yesterday the boy had made practically a zillion advances witch she returned by punching, kicking, or whacking him, and he still remained undeterred and unwilling to leave her alone.  
  
In fact, the more she did to try and repulse him, the more he seemed to want to charm her, even though she had bluntly stated it wouldn't work.  
  
"Good evening, Petite" Gambit said with a sexy smile, "Put a lid on it, Swamp Rat" Rogue retorted as conversation started up around them.  
  
Remy covered his heart, "Awww, you wound me, Cher'e" he said in mock hurt, Rogue gave him a death glare, "Not yet but Ah'm about to" she took a bite of mashed potatoes and pointed her knife at him, "Now let me eat in peace or Ah'll-"  
  
"Rogue" Storm warned from across the table, the Goth grunted, *He was asking for it* she thought in annoyance.  
  
"I see you put your make up back on" Remy observed as if it was the most casual thing in the universe, Rogue pretended not to notice the silence that fell over the room at his words.  
  
" 'Back on'?" Jubilee asked, "You actually went one day without wearing that awful stuff?" Rogue narrowed her eyes at everyone's expectance for an explanation, "It was only an hour or so not a whole day, and what's the big friggin' deal anyway?"  
  
The students exchanged glances, Rogue shot Remy a 'Why the hell did you bring that up' look, the Cajun put on his best innocent expression.  
  
The rest of dinner went by without incident, that is to say, Gambit was still breathing by the time it was over.  
  
"Rogue, wanna watch a movie with us?" Bobby asked, "Nope, Ah'm going to bed early" she answered and got out of there as quickly as possible.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
~ The voices grew louder as they approached her cell, she put on her mask, she wouldn't give them the pleasure of seeing how scared she was.  
  
"You know, you're the cutest one we've got so far" said the guard with an evil grin that would've made Magneto cringe in disgust.  
  
He placed a finger under her chin and Rogue slugged him, the guard doubled over and his friend yanked Rogue back, slipping a leather restraints on her forearms and tugging them so they cut deep into her skin.  
  
Rogue bit back a cry of pain, she was stronger then that, she wouldn't yell over a few bruises just so they could have a laugh.  
  
"Tsk, tsk, tsk" said the first guard, striating up, "Now don't make me do something that I'm gonna have to mess up that pretty little face of yours for"  
  
He stepped closer to her, Rogue narrowed her eyes, he chuckled and stepped even closer until his body was pressed against hers, she tried to back up but every time she did the other guard would pull tighter on her restraints.  
  
Rogue gritted her teeth in defiance, but in her mind she was crouching in fear, knowing what was coming, praying he wouldn't do what it looked like he was going to.  
  
But despite her silent pleas, the guard continued with his attack, it wasn't the kind of attack that she had been trained to defend against, it was the kind that her mutation would've prevented, but they had taken it away, the gift/curse she had always hated for making her so lonely, was gone.  
  
Touching wasn't supposed to be like this, it wasn't supposed to hurt this much, she wanted to make them go away, to make them stop what they were doing to her.  
  
Her mind screamed for help, screamed for them to go away, screamed for the nightmare to end.~  
  
Rogue woke up to the sound of her own sobs, she sat up in bed, fear and pain overwhelming her.  
  
She prayed Logan wouldn't sense it and come in here, she got up and covered her mouth to hold back her cries, glancing at Kitty to make sure the girl was still asleep.  
  
Rogue headed out of her room and down the hall, silently creeping downstairs and outside, she was grateful Logan had already finished his rounds of the mansion and hoped desperately that she wouldn't run into anybody.  
  
She rushed to the few acres of forest that surrounded the backyard of the Institute, brushing past the trees as tears flooded her cheeks and blurred her vision, she didn't even feel the rocks that cut into her bare feet as she broke through the clearing.  
  
Finally reaching her destination Rogue fell to her knees and buried her face in her hands, letting the feelings of torture and hurt overcome her.  
  
She wept until her throat was swollen and her mouth ached, then she laid down and curled into a ball, her grieving done, she could move on now, it was over.  
  
She let it go as the icy wind swirled around her and the dew on the grass socked into her clothes.  
  
Rogue brought her hands under her head and swallowed back the rest of her heartache.  
  
Touch, she had wanted it for so long, she had envied everyone for their ability to touch, just to feel the blissfulness of something they took for granted.  
  
Now, though, she wasn't sure if it was such a great thing, it could make you so vulnerable, bring so much pain, did she really want to be brought out of one prison just to be placed in another?  
  
These thoughts echoed dully in Rogue's mind as she drifted off to sleep, one of her burdens melting away with the sound of her gentle breathing.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue woke up in a sneezing fit, she shook her head to clear her vision but it didn't matter anyway, the fog that surrounded her was so thick she could barely see an inch in front of her face.  
  
She sighed and stood up, absently brushing at the grass stains that went all the way down her right side, no one would notice them due to her dark clothing, but they would notice the extreme dampness on her clothes, *Odd for someone who had supossidly slept in a warm bed under a pile of comforters* she thought with dry humor.  
  
She took her time heading back to the mansion, the fog, trees, and sharp rocks (which she was now painfully aware of) not being the only things slowing her down, it was also the dreaded yet unavoidable lecture she knew was bound to come.  
  
Rogue, never being one to share information about her personal life, was too stubborn to reveal any of last night's events in her defense, so she would have to sit through about eight minutes of Scott's ramblings, five minutes of everyone crowding around her and asking if she was okay, and the rest of the morning being given concerned looks.  
  
She was glad for one thing, it was definitely too early for anyone but the adults to be up, so she could get at least an hour of sleep before the entire Institute found out about her late night venture.  
  
If Rogue wasn't so tired she might've tried to sneak back in her room undetected, but the cold she had developed was making her drowsy and the cuts on her feet were bleeding a little too freely now.  
  
It seemed like an eternity before she finally made it to the mansion's back door, she slid to her knees and leaned against it, closing her eyes.  
  
Rogue took a deep breath, regaining a little of her strength before getting up and creeping inside the house.  
  
Logan, Storm, Hank and the Professor, were instantly at her side, "Where've you been, Stripes?" Wolverine asked as they guided her to the couch.  
  
She opened her mouth to answer, but a sneeze came out instead, she cupped her hand over her nose and Hank handed her a Kleenex box while Ororo wrapped a blanket around the girl's shoulders.  
  
"What's wrong, Cher`e?" Gambit walked into the room, Wolverine stepped in front of him so he couldn't get any closer to Rogue than a yard, "Not now, Gumbo" he grumbled threateningly.  
  
"It's alright, Ah was going to bed anyway" Rogue managed mumble between sneezes and trying to keep Ororo and Hank from fussing over her, "I believe it would be best if you came down to the medlab" Beast insisted.  
  
"No, Ah-" she sneezed, "Ah'm fine" "I'll get you up to your room and out of those wet clothes" Storm helped Rogue to her feet, the Goth winced.  
  
"Child you've really done a number on yourself" Storm said with a sigh as Logan pointed out the girl's injured feet.  
  
Before anyone could do anything else, Remy had a supporting arm under Rogue's shoulder, "I'll carry her up"  
  
Logan was about to scare the boy away from her, but Ororo, as usual, stopped him, "I think that would be best, Remy" she said pointedly, placing a hand on Wolverine's chest and giving him a light shove backward, "I will accompany you up"  
  
"Ah can walk" Rogue protested half-heartedly as Gambit scooped her up, "There's a difference between being able to, and being allowed to, Petite" he said with light humor, "You may be able to walk, but I wont allow you to, and you get no say in the matter"  
  
Rogue crossed her arms and scowled, she began grumbling about how she hated when people made her depend on them and how if she wasn't so tired she'd zap the smirk right off Remy's face.  
  
Gambit, of course, found her antics amusing, which just irked her more so she kept silent until they reached her and Kitty's room.  
  
He layed her down on her bed and chuckled, "This is becoming a habit"  
  
Storm shooed the Cajun out of the room before Rogue could come up with a venomous reply.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: What do ya' think? Don't hold back it takes a great deal to offend me, and if you liked it you can shower me with praise, either way it's cool:) 


	7. fighting Mesmero

Rogue trudged to the bathroom mid-afternoon Tuesday.  
  
She had woken up a few minutes ago and planned on taking a cold shower and getting right to work on rebuilding her shields.  
  
She didn't realize she had forgotten to take clothes in with her until she stepped back onto the hard-tile floor, "Oh, well, what's the worst that could happen? Everyone's at school anyway" she fastened a towel around her and made her way back to her room.  
  
When Rogue turned the corner, though, she got the answer to her previous question, she collided head on with Pyro and they landed in a mess of arms and legs.  
  
Rogue scrambled up quickly, thankful she had managed to keep a tight grip on the towel, St. John let out a low whistle, sitting up on his elbows, "By crikey"  
  
Rogue looked down at him, covering up her embarrassment with a glare, "Keep your eyes in their sockets" she spat with disgust, continuing on her way.  
  
She didn't get far before he caught up behind her, she felt his penetrating gaze and whirled around, "Are you going to follow me all the way to my room?"  
  
He grinned, "With this view? Yah" Rogue growled, "Back off you disgusting creep, before Ah zap ya'"  
  
"There a problem here?" Rogue relaxed at the sound of the familiar voice, Warren was coming up behind St. John and he looked ready to kill the guy if need be.  
  
"No, no problem, this flame thrower was just leaving" he caught the double meaning in her words and clamped a firm hand on Pyro's shoulder, "Why don't I show you the way to the stairs?" he commented, glancing back at Rogue as he turned the Australian in the other direction.  
  
She flashed him a smile, which he returned and proceeded to have a 'quaint' little chat with the red head still in his hold.  
  
Rogue smirked and started, for the second time, to her room, glad that she didn't bump into anyone else.  
  
She quickly dressed, combed her hair, and applied her regular amount of dark make up, she then opened her window and settled into her meditating position, ready to pick up where she'd left off yesterday.  
  
*Rogue, we need you downstairs, now!*  
  
Rogue's eyes flew open at the sound of urgency in the Professor's voice, she hurried to the briefing room where, Warren, Ororo, Logan, Beast, Magneto, and the Acolytes were already gathered.  
  
Xavier didn't waist any time, "Mesmero has located the third key, he is on his way to a museum in Holland to retrieve it" (A/N: let me just inform you that I have little knowledge about Holland's landscape, history, etc. so don't flame me for inconsistant info or whatever)  
  
"I'll pick up the rest of the team" Wolverine said, about to head for the garage, "No" the Professor stated, "If we pull all of the X-men out of school it might alert the media and that is definitely something we do not need"  
  
Logan grunted, but stayed put.  
  
"Now, we will take the X-jet and see if we can secure the key before Mesmero does, if so than there is no need for violence, if not." He trailed off but they all caught his meaning, if Mesmero got the key before them then things would get dirty.  
  
"Alright, let's go"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue jumped out of the jet with Remy on her heels, they had all been paired off into teams for different parts of the keys retrieval, Rogue and Gambit were the stealth part.  
  
Gambit would get them in without setting off any alarms, Rogue would be his back up incase they ran into trouble with the guards, she would also watch for any sign of detection while he stole the key.  
  
Rogue mused at how it was so late at night over on this side of the world, when back in America people were only few hours away from getting off work and out of school.  
  
She concentrated on the mission at hand as Remy motioned for her to follow him down a rope lowered on one side of the building and through a window that he opened with his kinetic charge power.  
  
Once they were inside they found the panel that controlled the laser system and disarmed it with some help from Hank over the intercom.  
  
"Is it just me or is this way too easy" Rogue whispered as they approached the room that supposedly held the key in it, "Ah mean, we haven't caught even a glimpse of a guard"  
  
Remy smirked, "What else do you expect when your with the most cunning thief in the world" Rogue rolled her eyes, "Ah expect trouble, this is starting to feel like a trap"  
  
"Quit worrying, Cher`e"  
  
Rogue just frowned and kept her senses tuned as they entered the room, Remy charged a card so he could see the cases, "There it is, we got to it first" he said with a smile, personally he would have preferred more of a challenge.  
  
"And a challenge you shall have" a creepy voice filled the room and all the museum's lights came on, there stood Mesmero, holding a ruby colored chain that had two golden charms hanging from the middle.  
  
It was an exact replica of the item Gambit had been about to take, Rogue was tempted to say "I told you so", but kept her mouth shut, she didn't want to draw Mesmero's attention, she had been trained to think fast in this kind of situation, and think fast she did by reopening the com-link without the telepath's noticing.  
  
Remy had charged a few cards and threw them at the other man, but they were sent right back at him and Rogue.  
  
Due to quick reflexes the younger mutants managed to dodge the objects, "Now would be a good time for back up!" Rogue yelled into her com-link, as if on cue the door burst open and everyone rushed in.  
  
Storm swirled a tornado around Mesmero, Logan raced at him with his claws out, the Professor fought kinetic force against kinetic force, St. John surrounded him with dogs made out of fire, Colossus took a swing at him, Magneto pulled on everything that would react to magnetism and sent it hurtling towards him, and Remy charged a few more cards in his direction.  
  
However, their attempts to over power the telepath were in vain, every attack was sent right back at them with even greater force.  
  
Rogue suddenly had an idea, Jean and the Professor had always marveled at how she, being a non-telepath, could keep them out of her mind with hardly any effort.  
  
If she covered up what she was thinking and proceeded with the plan that was forming in her head, maybe she would be able to go through with it without detection.  
  
She didn't risk projecting anything to the Professor, she just made sure the others kept the creep busy.  
  
She didn't know how she was able to get behind him, all she remembered was slipping off her glove and putting a hand to his face, and now his memories and powers were flowing into her.  
  
They were so strong, she had to force herself not to black out at the powerful rush, after a few seconds she realized she would have to absorb his whole being if she wanted to stop him.  
  
She didn't know if she could do it, she didn't know if she could really kill someone, her mind began to swim and her head pounded violently, her body started to tingle and breathing became herder and herder by the second.  
  
Finally it was done, a lifeless Mesmero fell to the floor, Rogue stumbled backwards, holding her head and breathing heavily, images melded and swirled together, all jumbling up in one big pile.  
  
She opened her eyes and stared at the man she had killed, she fought back the tears with every ounce of energy she had left, she stood for a moment, transfixed in her confused state.  
  
Everyone crowded around her but she wasn't aware of them, a sudden surge of power pulsed through her, a barrier was brought up around her mind, the strongest mental walls she could ever imagine shielded her thoughts, sorted her memories and locked away the personalities of Kurt Wagner, Kitty Pryde, and Mesmero.  
  
All this took place in a matter of minutes, accomplishing what she had been wanting to work at for the last two days, her shields were back, three times as durable as before, she had new powers, she was a telepath and a telekinetic.  
  
Rogue blinked a couple of times, letting the surreal feeling that had settled over her, wash away, than she blacked out.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Okay this one was kind of short but I still hope you liked, please review:) 


	8. Unprotected

Disclaimer: I do not own the song "Naked", it belongs to Avril Lavigne.  
  
(A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, thanks for all the awesome reviews, I really appreciate it, as usual, hope you all enjoy this chapter:)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue jolted up, her heart racing, she looked frighteningly at her surroundings, all in one swift motion.  
  
For a few agonizing seconds the room she was in whirled around her and her mind couldn't process any information, than it all came to her in a head splitting rush.  
  
Rogue swung her legs over the side of the recovery bed in medlab, Beast was watching her intently, she responded to the attention with a sharp glare as all of the doctor's thoughts and feelings washed over her.  
  
Voices roared in her brain, but soon settled as her newly acquired powers sorted and filtered them until she was able to turn off her telepathy, having full control over her added mutation.  
  
Now she realized that he was talking, his seemingly jumbled words giving her an intense headache, so she took care of that too, by shutting him out, literally, no one knew it but one of Mesmero's powers was being able to turn off the five senses, sight, sound, touch, taste and smell.  
  
She wondered how long she'd been out, deciding to probe Mr. McCoy's mind for the answer, but instead coming up with something unexpected, there was one question that the doctor was focused on at the moment, and she took the liberty of answering it.  
  
"No, it didn't" she turned her hearing back on and was greeted by stunned silence, she ignored it and continued, "Your theory's wrong, Mesmero's powers wont help control my original"  
  
Pity, that was the main emotion she felt radiating off of him with her words.  
  
Rogue could care less though, it wasn't as if touch mattered that much to her anymore, despite what he and all the others thought, she had experienced that something she had once treasured so much, could bring unbearable pain, and she never wanted to go through that again.  
  
She was focused on another problem right now anyway, she had killed someone, but she didn't know how to react, it had given her, her control back, her mask, her walls, three times as strong as they had ever been, and she had extra power, which she was using without guilt.  
  
She wondered what this made her, *Guess I must be following in my mothers footsteps* thinking like that used to infuriate her, but now she was confused, was she really the cold blooded killer Mystique had trained her to be?  
  
Hank started speaking again, this time his words were intelligible, "The rest of the team is asleep, you were unconscious for six hours"  
  
Rogue frowned, hopped off the recovery bed, and proceeded to walk out, "And where do you think you are going?" Beast asked, stepping in front of the door and blocking her exit.  
  
She raised a hand and brushed him aside with her kinetic force, "To my room" she kept her hand up, warding off his concern and inquiries.  
  
She knew the Professor would not be to happy about this, so she was going to take up this argument now.  
  
Rogue was glad it was past curfew, only Storm, Wolverine, and the occasional Acolyte would be roaming the mansion, and using her new powers she could easily avoid even them.  
  
She arrived at Xavier's office and she knew he'd been expecting her when he beat her to the talking, "Rogue, it would be against my better judgment if I did not ask you to return to medlab"  
  
"Why can't Ah stay in my own room? Mesmero's gone, the key is in our possession, the odds are in our favor, why can't ya'll just concentrate on that instead of questioning my mental stability?"  
  
"No one is ques-" "Save it Professor, Ah'm a telepath now; you think Ah'm whacked" there was a stubbornness in her voice, promising an unrelenting argument if she didn't get what she wanted.  
  
"Rogue, please" the Professor tried not to let his frustration show.  
  
Rogue stood her ground, but not wanting to upset her mentor, offered a compromise, "Listen, if you'll let me stay in my own room and start going back to school, Ah'll check in with Mr. McCoy twice a day until you think Ah'm 'functioning properly'"  
  
Xavier considered this, "There is one more condition I would like to add" he proposed, "No missions, I will allow Danger Room sessions, but nothing outside the Institute except for school"  
  
She nodded, "Thanks, Professor" and she left, sneaking up to her and Kitty's room.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------- Rogue felt exhausted and thought sleep would come as soon as her head hit the pillow, sadly, it wasn't that simple.  
  
She starred at the ceiling, welcomed darkness enveloped her, she was afraid to close her eyes, the images still haunting her.  
  
Glove coming off, skin meeting skin, the limp body of her opponent, the enemy, a terrorist of minds.  
  
Shouldn't there be a certain sense of justice? She was the good guy, he was the villain, she had saved the world by destroying a definite threat, so why the black hole feeling?  
  
Rogue rolled over and glanced out the window, she had an unobstructed view of a full, pale moon.  
  
Tears, the same color as that moon, dripped silently, always silently, down her face, she cried herself to sleep as she had done so many times, her mask never seemed to want to stay in place, even with her reinforced shields.  
  
She shut her added mutation off, giving him the advantage of sneaking in undetected, he was the only one who knew the reason she cried, he was the only one that could understand.  
  
Rogue could feel him, powers or not, he knelt next to her, that was all, he didn't make another move, he was there, that was enough.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
_I wake up in the mornin'  
  
Put on my face  
  
The one that's gonna get me  
  
Through another day_  
  
Rogue applied her dark layer of make up, starring at the person that wasn't really her, she was acting as if nothing had happened, she was going to go to school as if her life hadn't taken a step in the worst direction imaginable.  
  
_Doesn't really matter  
  
How I feel inside  
  
This life is like a game sometimes_  
  
She waved off everyone's concern when she went downstairs, plastered on a neuteral expression, completely constricting with the girl that was bunched up in a ball behind her daddy's sofa, that's the state her mental image was in.  
  
_Then you came around me  
  
The walls just disappeared  
  
Nothing to surround me  
  
And keep me from my fears_  
  
Rogue was beginning to think she would make it through today, maybe things wouldn't be so bad, maybe they wouldn't hurt as much, maybe her mask would stay in place.  
  
That was until Remy came into the kitchen, gazes locked, time stood still.  
  
_I'm unprotected  
  
See how I've opened up  
  
You made me trust_  
  
It was only for an instant, but it felt longer, Rogue broke eye contact, thankful that no one else noticed the exchange, one crack, one slip, and they would see her, they would see what she was hiding.  
  
He had seen already, it was a mistake, only it didn't hurt when he saw her, it always hurt with the others, not him.  
  
_ 'Cause I've never  
  
Felt like this before  
  
I'm naked around you  
  
Does it show?  
  
You see right through me  
  
And I can't hide  
  
I'm naked around you  
  
And it feels so right_  
  
*I wonder when it ends? This hell they call a mind* she thought as Scott's car pulled into the school driveway and they all got out.  
  
The insults started automatically, Rogue breezed by, hearing turned off, without a second thought, her walls up, walking with Kitty as if they didn't have a care in the world.  
  
Her façade was dented though, when she found herself drawing red planets against black space for art class.  
  
_I'm trying to remember  
  
Why I was afraid  
  
To be myself and let the  
  
Covers fall away_  
  
Rogue thought back to when this started, her mutation, she was twelve, he was her best friend, they'd known each other forever, his name was Cody.  
  
She told him everything, things nobody would get the chance to know, because three nights before she turned thirteen, something had happened that made the girl isolate herself from everyone.  
  
_Guess I never had  
  
Someone like you  
  
To help me fit  
  
In my skin_  
  
Thinking about Cody got her to thinking about Gambit, again, as she headed for lunch, half her focus diverted between internal struggles and keeping her telepathy tuned in the Brotherhood's direction so they didn't cause any trouble.  
  
She hardly flinched when Remy slid in a seat next to her, she had sensed him, and now he was doing his best to flirt.  
  
His mask was so typically covering the sensitive, understanding boy she knew as Remy LeBeau, but she still felt exposed, wary that her composure would slip while she was around him.  
  
_I've never Felt like this before  
  
I'm naked around you  
  
Does it show  
  
You see right through me  
  
And I can't hide  
  
I'm naked around you  
  
And it feels so right_  
  
Rogue and Gambit had started up their own little game of cat and mouse, advance, evade, advance, evade.  
  
It was drawing the rest of the team's attention, Rogue had unfortunately sat down at a table right next to theirs, so the X-men were well within hearing range.  
  
Pietro decided now would be a could time to annoy his father's goon, he sped up to the table that hosted the Cajun charmer and former 'Hood girl.  
  
But before Quicksilver could get a sound out, he was pinned to the ground by an unknown force, Rogue smiled down a him, "Don't even think about it Speedy"  
  
He looked at her with confusion and wounded pride, Rogue was glad that none of the preps seemed too interested that she was using her powers, the longer she tortured him the better mood she was in, "Didn't daddy tell you? Ah am now one of the most powerful mutants on earth, Sugah, and you just made your first mistake in tryin' to mess with me"  
  
She levitated him slightly off the ground, his eyes widened, she smiled evilly and stood up, the X-men and Gambit looking at this display with amusement.  
  
Suddenly the bell rang and kids started rushing back inside the building, Rogue gave a mock pout, "And here Ah was so looking forward to pulverizing your snotty little face, guess Ah'll have to take a rain check"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
The Brotherhood were the last people to enter the school after lunch, Lance, Todd, and Fred were snickering with uncontained laughter, "I would've killed to have gotten a picture of your face right then" Alvers chuckled.  
  
"You are so whipped, yo" Toad added, "I can't wait till she kicks your sorry butt" Blob threw in. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: I'm not really satisfied with some of how this chapter turned out, but I rewrote it about three times so I hope you guys like it) 


	9. Ah'm not my mother

(A/N: Again, sorry for the wait, just to warn you this plot seems to be escalating.)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue took to the skies, her mind reeling with new found freedom, the wind rushing through her short hair as she used her levitation to fly above the garden in the mansion's back yard.  
  
It was four in the morning, but Rogue couldn't sleep, instincts that accompanied her added mutation kicked in and ended her up with the clouds, soaring just above the Institute's roof.  
  
She didn't feel the piercing cold of the winter dawn, she'd turned off her touch, she was thinking now, and reaching out with her senses, picking up danger.  
  
Rogue stopped and hovered near the gate surrounding the only area she was allowed to go, something was wrong, ever since yesterday afternoon, after the incident with Pietro, when the Acolytes announced that there was no need for them to stay with the X-men any longer, she'd been getting bad vibes.  
  
She had been about to dismiss the nagging feeling, but it persisted, giving her a restless night and nothing else to do but investigate it's meaning.  
  
*Magneto must be planning something* she thought, rolling her eyes at her own way too obvious assumption, she couldn't probe the master of magnetism's brain, though, to find out what he was up to, his shields were too strong.  
  
*Guess I'll just have to spy on him, then* Rogue smirked, the expression on Eric Maximoff's face would be priceless when he found out that one of Xavier's students destroyed his next big plan.  
  
Unfortunately, what Rogue didn't know was that 'she' was Magneto's next big plan, and by trying to stop him would only end up helping him.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Destiny, otherwise known as Irene, waited attentively as Raven Darkholme paced in front of the diminished fireplace at their main base of operations.  
  
"Are you sure it was Rogue you saw?" Mystique finally asked, without pausing in her concentrative state.  
  
Only Irene would be able to tell that her shape-shifting friend's actions indicated nervousness, she may be technically blind, but she saw everything that other people missed, "I am sure, the first stage in her return to us has taken place"  
  
Raven stopped her infernal pacing and felt some of the weariness leave her slender body, she smiled, this was coming together, it would turn out her way, *It feels good to be back on top*  
  
Now she was one step ahead of both Xavier and Magneto, she had Wanda the Scarlet Witch, under her influence, and was soon to have Rogue as well.  
  
With those two, she would start a new Brotherhood, after all, they were currently the two most powerful mutants in the world.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy LeBeau swung the duffel bag over his shoulder and followed the rest of the Acolytes to the transporter balls (A/N: What do they call those things anyway?)  
  
He gave a parting speech to the ladies before he stepped into the metal dome that would take him back to Magneto's main base, "It pains me to no end, leaving such radiant femmes behind, but I must go" he blew them all a kiss, they giggled and blushed.  
  
All except one, she was leaning against the wall of the mansion, completely detached and uninterested, he had tried to talk to her before packing, and even after as St. John had dragged him out the door, but she blew him off.  
  
He caught her gaze now, something flashed in her emerald eyes, it was hard to tell if the emotion was anger, hate, sorrow, or hurt.  
  
Then her hair fell down again, covering her face, hiding the last bit of feeling she would ever show in front of another living soul.  
  
Gambit kept his cool exterior as the transport closed up around him, then he sighed and slumped down it's smooth surface, he didn't want to battle her again, all he wanted to do was be able to be near her as anything but the enemy.  
  
He valued his family's life, though, so that would never happen, he couldn't risk everything just for one girl that he'd been careless enough to let himself fall for.  
  
He couldn't deny that he cared deeply about her, he had never overlooked the obvious, there were just too many complications, *But I want her so badly* he berated himself for those thoughts.  
  
He recalled something his mother had once told him, "'Better to lose the game of love than not play at all'" Remy smirked, him losing a game? Hell must've frozen over.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Kitty and Rogue sat in their room in companionable silence, both recovering from yet another loss.  
  
Kitty thought about Peter, he had given her a pretty bouquet of pink and yellow tulips right before leaving, he had helped her get over Lance and forget her loneliness, even if it had been for just a few days.  
  
*He's so sweet, why does he work for that jerk Magneto anyway? Why can't he join us, then we could get in a relationship* sadness spread through the usually cheerful girl, she felt like she had just lost her last chance at love.  
  
Colossus was different then anyone she had ever met, and he respected her, he knew her for who she truly was, and now she was lonely again.  
  
Mean while Rogue was slipping into a stage of denial, an often occurrence when it came to her emotions, *I can get over him, he's probably already forgotten about me, probably clubin', trying to score a one night stand, why am I even thinking about him? I should start working on how I'm gonna mess up his egoistic Cajun face in our next battle*  
  
So there it went, two friends, longing and lonely, each dealing with it in their own way, until one finally breaks the revere, "Rogue?" Kitty asked quietly.  
  
The Goth looked over at her, "What is it?" the Valley girl absently played with a strand of her brunette hair, "Promise me something"  
  
Rogue was taken aback, purely shocked, those were three words she never thought she'd hear in her life, "Ye-yea?" she managed to get out.  
  
"That no matter how many people that will come and go in our lives, we'll always stick by each other"  
  
To say the least Rogue was touched, her hard mask softened, "Ah promise, Sugah" Kitty smiled sadly.  
  
And that was all the needed to be done, no matter what, Kitty Pryde and Rogue would never be torn apart.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue slumped in her seat as the history teacher droned on, she tuned him out and drew into her own little world, forcing herself not to think about anything except how she was going to spy on Magneto when she couldn't go off the Institute grounds.  
  
Rogue was so caught up in her planning that she didn't notice Pietro, who was sitting one row back, jot down a note and ask the guy in front of him to hand it to her.  
  
The scrap of paper was slipped lazily on her desk as it's deliverer went back to dozing, Rogue picked it up absently and scanned quick eyes over it, then she crumpled it up, cloaked it with her telepathy, and sent it floating back to it's origins.  
  
Quicksilver pouted playfully, he wanted someone to mess with, and Rogue was proving harder and harder to irritate, or anger, or anything for that matter.  
  
Still, she was his only option, none of the other BoM or X-geeks were in this class, besides, Rogue was unpredictable, what was trivial to her now might really tick her off latter.  
  
He wrote another note, this time making it something that might get her to play his game.  
  
*Knock it off, Speedy, Ah don't have time for this* Rogue's voice in his head startled him, but, true to his name, he quickly regained his cockiness, *What? You dreamin' about my dad's favorite puppet? Sorry to disappoint you but I saw him leading a blond chick into his room, father should really get sound proof walls, they kept me up all night*  
  
Rogue hardly flinched, her durability was incredible, *Get your mind outta the gutter, Ah'm the one that has to read it, let's see, anything in here about chrome-dome's latest plot?*  
  
Pietro put a protective arm over his head, as if that would keep her out, then he had a wicked idea, *While you're in here.* he trailed off and flashed her a sick mental image that had to do with, well, her and a bath tub.  
  
He began bouncing in his seat so he wouldn't erupt into laughter as Rogue pulled out of his mindscape and nearly threw up on her desk, *That was the most repulsive, disgusting, vulgar thing, if we weren't in front of a bunch of humans Ah'd kick your ass right now*  
  
*Tsk, tsk, Roguey, the X-geeks wouldn't want you to get violent*  
  
*You say that as if it matters* she bit back, he grinned, *Now there's the rebel I love so much*  
  
*Shut up, Maximoff* Rogue leaned in her seat and looked out the window, it caught Pietro's reflection and their eyes met in the glass, her's were glaring daggers, his were smirking annoyingly.  
  
*Why the interest in what my father's doing anyway?* she didn't reply, just shot him another death glare before turning her hearing on and sitting up straighter, she sensed the teacher was about to approach, "Can you give us the answer, miss Rogue?" he asked.  
  
It took her less than a second to recollect, everything that was said during the class, all she had to do was scan one of the brainiacs, "1875" she had no clue what the question was, but she knew that was the answer.  
  
He frowned, but moved on to the next unsuspecting daydreamer, Rogue would've blown out a breath of relief if she had been anyone else, then the bell rang, signaling freedom, and everyone was off.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue sat in a chair in the living room, legs flung over one side arms crossed over her chest in boredom.  
  
As soon as everyone had gotten home from school, they were, with the exception of Rogue, ushered back out again, on a mission, against the Acolytes.  
  
*Those guys don't waist anytime, do they?* she grunted and got up, not even the Professor had stayed behind, there was nothing she could do, homework had taken her twenty minutes, thanks to, of course, Mesmero, only it was his memories that had helped her out this time.  
  
Surprisingly, the guy had gone to an actual school, aced everything, went to college, graduated with honors, met Apocalypse, and his life went trash from there.  
  
Rogue paced in front of the fire, mulling over her problems, first Magneto, second Pietro, and third her teammates, not including Kitty, Kurt, Storm, and Logan.  
  
She was stumped at problem number one, so she skipped it for now, problem number two would be easy, with the other X-men gone she could give him an overdue beating, problem number three was hard, but not impossible.  
  
Ever since she'd killed their enemy, they'd been treating her like scientists would with an ancient and priceless relic, either avoiding her altogether or putting up the fake grins and meaningless conversations.  
  
They'd tip-toe around everything, it was driving her crazy, she pushed them away and that was that, at least until training sessions or meals.  
  
So she had two options here, start eating in her room and cloaking herself with her telepathy when it was essential she go downstairs, or brainwash them so they don't remember what happened.  
  
*I'll have to go with option number one, don't wanna be too immoral, okay, time to take care of problem number two*  
  
She exited the Institute and walked to the Brotherhood house, no one noticed her slip in, she covered her actions, silently flying up to Pietro's door.  
  
She was about to enter the speed demon's room when Wanda appeared behind her, "What are you doing here?"  
  
Rogue faced the other Goth coolly, "Ah'm gonna give your brother a slow and painful death, have a problem with that?"  
  
"Not at all" Wanda replied, leaning against the wall, "Be sure to hide the body where Sabertooth can't track it"  
  
They both smirked, Rogue sensed a connection starting between them, she had feeling she was gonna like the Scarlet Witch.  
  
Without any further interruptions, Rogue kicked open Pietro's door and wasted no time tackling the silver haired boy down.  
  
He was no match for her with her new powers, she could stop him from running, so he was basically defenseless.  
  
Wanda watched this with mild interest as Rogue whipped out a knife and held it against Pietro's throat, "Let's chat" she said with an evil grin.  
  
Maximoff gulped, suddenly there was a slight rumble as Lance, Todd, and Fred busted into the room, "What's going-" Lance didn't finish, instead he smiled at the scene in front of him, "It's about time, someone get the popcorn"  
  
"Idiots, get her off me!" Pietro yelped, Alvers raised his eyebrows and plopped down on the bed, "What's this? Quicksiver complaining about a girl being on top of him?"  
  
Toad snickered and Fred laughed.  
  
Rogue ignored the rest of the exchange and proceeded to put more pressure on the knife she was using against her victim, "Quit your whining, Pietro, this started out with me wanting to kill you, but now Ah want information, than you can die"  
  
Quicksilver didn't look any less horrified.  
  
"What's bucket-head up to, and don't even think about lying to me because Ah can sense it a mile away" she could practically feel his heart trembling with fear, what no one knew right then, was that Rogue was actually the scared one, she felt as if she were back with Mystique again, threatening information out of targets, then killing them afterwards.  
  
*I'm not my mother, I am NOT my mother..* she repeated over and over to herself, all the while keeping her menacing mask up. "IdontknowwhathesdoingIswear" Pietro was hyperventilating, Rogue narrowed her emerald orbs on him, then suddenly smirked and got up, "Thanks for your cooperation, hope to do future business with you"  
  
She slipped the knife into a secretive fold in her shirt, she always kept it there for protection, then she turned and walked out, leaving a shaking Pietro and hysteric Brotherhood behind.  
  
Rogue rushed as fast as she could back to the mansion, glad to see the team hadn't come back yet.  
  
She slowly floated up to the roof, sat down, curled into a ball, and began mumbling to herself, "Ah am not my mother, Ah am not my mother, Ah am not my mother"  
  
She continued this until she sensed the X-jet getting near, then she slipped quietly to her room and didn't come out for the rest of the night.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: This is probably my longest one yet, hope ya'll like it:) 


	10. Vision of the new Brotherhood

ATR: Yea, a Goth listens to Avril:) couldn't help it, she's the only artist from the pop world I can stand to listen to.  
  
(A/N: Yah, more reviews! (hugs Pyro)  
  
St. John: "Geez, down girl"  
  
J.D: "Nope, you're are officially my muse, and that means I can't do whatever I want to you"  
  
St. John: "Not in this lifetime, shiela, I've seen what gothic-rogue-13 puts Alvers through, you ain't takin' me alive"  
  
J.D: "Sorry you feel that way, 'cause I stole your flame thrower and you're not getting it back until you become my personal entertainer"  
  
St. John: (whimpers) "Americans are so cruel"  
  
J.D: "No, just the insane ones"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue made sure she put on her mask effectively before heading downstairs after doing her homework.  
  
She'd spaced all day during school and was starting to worry Kitty, although her friend didn't press the matter, Rogue was grateful for that.  
  
She was mulling about Mystique, was she really turning into her mother? She hated the idea more than the fact that she had murdered someone, and that was saying a lot.  
  
"Hey, Stripes, you got mail" Logan's gruff voice greeted her as she walked into the main room and took a seat by Jamie, "It's from Destiny"  
  
Rogue frowned, she hadn't heard from Irene in months, she'd guessed that Raven had made the older mutant take a vow of silence while the shape shifter was still in hiding, "Let me guess, no return address?" she asked, taking the envelope from Wolverine.  
  
He grunted his frustration with that fact, "Can't smell a thing" he suddenly turned from irritated to concerned, "You okay with this?" he motioned to the letter now in her possession.  
  
Rogue gave him a reassuring smile, "Ah'm not gonna go Sabertooth again, 's only Irene" the room immediately tensed, it took all Rogue's control not to lash out at their behavior.  
  
She went back upstairs, turning off the powers she didn't realize had been open due to her anger at her teammate's cautious attitude around her.  
  
*This is playing out just like every other time, their gonna start hating me once the reality of this whole thing sinks in, Jean'll start cursing me out to the younger girls, she's always been high in social status, after all perfect angels don't stoop to living across the hall from Gothic devils*  
  
With her teeth grinding, Rogue ripped open the letter and read, trying to take her mind off her situation.  
  
~Dear Rogue,  
  
How have you been, sweetie? It's been a while since I've heard from you, though I haven't been keeping you up to date either, now have I?  
  
Raven has been ranting all year about her latest plot, I must deeply apologize for the devastating effects her plan has caused, I know it does not seem like it but she does care for you and Kurt.  
  
I wish to hear from you soon.  
  
Remember, if your load starts getting too heavy, and you need to let it go for a while, come visit me at the old house.  
  
Love, Irene.~  
  
Rogue's concentration was now fully on those few sentences, maybe that was it, she should leave the X-men before her presence becomes a heated debate.  
  
She sat there, letter still clutched tightly in her hand, deep in thought, if she went back to living with Irene she would eventually have to start doing Mystique's dirty work again.  
  
If she rejoined the Brotherhood that would just leave her in Magneto's grasp, and he was still planning something she couldn't get information on.  
  
So there were four things she could do.  
  
One: pay a temporary visit to Destiny and end up getting in more trouble for going outside the mansion, then await her fate at the Institute.  
  
Two: run away to assassin mother, end up having to fight against her friends, and stay permanently with Irene.  
  
Three: Go to the Brotherhood, also end up having to fight against her friends, and fall into Magneto's hold.  
  
Four: stay here, risk constant pain, confusion, heartache, have her so called friends turn against her, meaning the real people that cared about her would be shunned as well, and end up being kicked out anyway.  
  
Rogue's chest tightened with hurt, why had the universe adopted her as it's punch line? The literal freak of nature, differing, even from other outcasts, why was she the one that always suffered when it came to fate? Rogue placed the letter in her dresser drawer and opened her window, flying out it up towards the roof.  
  
She sighed and sat down, wishing that she could be anyone but her, of course that had always been something she wished for.  
  
"Need some company?", Rogue tilted her head to see Warren landing next to her and gracefully folding his beautiful wings around him.  
  
She took a moment to marvel at how gorgeous the scene was, a blond haired man with clear blue eyes, soft white wings reaching from his broad shoulder blades and curving down past his knees as he stood against a golden multi colored sunset.  
  
It was definitely a heavenly sight, *I swear he's a real angel*, while getting lost in these thoughts she almost forgot to answer his question, "Uh, yeah"  
  
He smiled and sat with one leg stretched out in front of him and the other pulled up, causing him to lean back on his hands for support.  
  
"So what brings you up here?"  
  
Rogue wished he hadn't asked that, she didn't want to dwell on the issue, but she answered him anyway, hoping someone else's opinion might help her.  
  
"Everyone's been walking a tight rope since Ah ki---absorbed Mesmero, Ah know they think Ah'm unstable and Scott keeps wondering if that makes me a threat to the team, Jean's all but dying to get rid of me, if the Professor hears one more word from them about it he's gonna relent, Irene wants me home, Mystique wants me recruited, Magneto is planning something that I don't know anything about, and to top it all off, there's only one thing keeping me here to begin with"  
  
Angel took all this in without so much as a blink, "And what is the one thing keeping you here?" he asked consolingly.  
  
"A promise Ah made to Kitty yesterday, that we would stick together no matter what" Rogue took a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair in exasperation.  
  
"Well, than, here's how I see it, if you run away or get kicked out, I know of more than one person who would follow you, so does Xavier, meaning he would suffer a big loss by leaving you on your own. As for Jean and Scott, they can go to hell because that's where Logan and Storm would send them if they harass you into leaving"  
  
Rogue smirked, "You're right about that, but Ah really do miss Irene, it's not as if Ah can't ward Mystique off, it's just Ah'm not sure Ah want to, lately Ah've been feeling out of place here"  
  
Warren gave her a grave expression, "Your absence would hurt all of us, I'm sure"  
  
She shifted uncomfortably, then realization hit her, "Kitty would come with me, it doesn't take a telepath to know that, and we would keep in contact with you guys, it'd only be till Ah've..."  
  
Rogue wasn't sure how to phrase it, *Found what I'm looking for* she finished the sentence in her mind, *But what am I looking for?*  
  
Angel looked at her curiously, "What, Rogue?"  
  
"Never mind, maybe it's best if Ah just stay here, thanks for talking with me" she said getting up and floating down to her window.  
  
She slipped back into her bedroom and pulled out her sketch pad, art always got her to forget stuff for a while, so she began drawing Angel surrounded by a sunset background, just as she had seen him earlier.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy shuffled his cards and watched St. John play with the fireplace, he was thinking about Rogue for the umpteenth time, she hadn't shown up during the fight yesterday and he felt something was wrong.  
  
Peter was sitting as silent as ever, but with a strangely disturbed look on his face, *Probably thinking 'bout the other femme* Gambit thought, his shuffling became faster, he wanted nothing more then to check up on Rogue and was finding it hard to concentrate on anything else.  
  
Just then Magneto entered the room and all three boys stood at attention, "Gambit" he said in his usual deep voice, "Go and drop a trail for Rogue to follow, she is losing interest in my scheme, if we do not get her the plan fails"  
  
Remy was surprised, he hadn't really paid attention to his boss when the master of magnetism had given them a lecture about his 'plan' for world domination, so he was stunned to find out that a key part, of what the older mutant was working for, was Rogue.  
  
LeBeau quickly hurried out of their base glad that he was getting a chance to see his Cher`e, upset that it wasn't for another purpose.  
  
It took less than an hour to reach the mansion, somehow he managed to avoid Wolverine and got passed the security system easily.  
  
He then crept up to Rogue's room and let his shields slip, just a little, alerting her to his presence.  
  
Rogue stirred, waking up to the pitch darkness.  
  
She felt an unwelcome presence move by the bedroom door, *Time to catch a Cajun* she thought, slowly rising from under the covers and silently trekking in the thief's wake.  
  
Remy knew Rogue was behind him, but didn't let on to that fact, leading her through the hallway to the lower levels.  
  
He scanned the computer rooms of the metallic halls until picking a random one and hacking into it.  
  
*Alright, what are you up to?* Rogue tried to get through his mental walls, finding them frustratingly too strong, hoping he would let them down again.  
  
Gambit felt her annoyance and grinned, taking out a disc, he pretended to copy files, all he was really doing was planting false evidence to get her intrigued with his boss's scheme.  
  
"Ya'll better have a good explanation for being here" she finally spoke out.  
  
Remy feigned surprise and swiftly ejected the disc, turning to face her, "Just be looking to see how they been treatin' ma lovely belle, Cher'e" he turned on all his charm full force.  
  
Rogue glared dangerously at him, "Jean's room is on the second floor, Swamp Rat, and unless you want to have your blood oozing out your ears, Ah suggest you come up with a better excuse."  
  
"Why would I need to know where the cheerleader sleeps? This Cajun only has eyes for you, Petite" he smiled sexily, Rogue growled, "Don't start your game with me, Swamp Rat, Ah ain't takin' the bait, tell me why lame-brain sent ya' here"  
  
When he didn't answer, she lifted him up with her TK and pinned him to the ceiling, "Fine, you wanna do this the hard way" she pulled out her knife, "Ah can absorb you, slice you, or you can start talking"  
  
Remy pretended to get edgy, "Don't do something you're gonna regret, Cher`e" he took a defeated breath, "Magneto need some files for his work and he sent me to collect 'em, that's all I know about this job"  
  
Rogue sensed his sincerity, waited a few moments, then let him drop, landing hard on the ground, "Never let me see you around here again" were her parting words as she walked away, her attention once again on Magneto's plot.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Irene sat up with a start as the vision blinked out of her mind, she shook her head to recover from the suddenness of it all.  
  
Her dream had been of Rogue, Wanda, and Shadowcat, they were all fighting side by side against and unknown force, but winning the battle with ease.  
  
Then the scene changed, devastation hung heavy in the air, Rogue emerged from a black screen of smoke, walking towards someone, it was Mystique.  
  
And then there was a picture of the new Brotherhood, an invincible force of mutants, Wanda Maximoff, Kitty Pryde, and Rogue Darkholme.  
  
Irene shudder, there had been anger, pain, and loss in each of the children's souls, that's how Raven would get them.  
  
Destiny knew she had to stop this from happening, she couldn't let those kids suffer, she had to somehow get them together so they could defeat Mystique.  
  
Irene had never gone against her friend before, but the price was too great this time.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue and Kitty shared a table at lunch in the food court, Wanda approached them, "Can I sit here?" she asked.  
  
Rogue nodded, "I, like, didn't know you went to school" Kitty said, in an attempt to start a conversation.  
  
"I didn't, until Mystique forced me to" the Scarlet Witch replied, Rogue gave an expression of disgust, "And you do whatever she tells you to?"  
  
Wanda narrowed her eyes, "I need her help to find 'daddy dearest'"  
  
The three got along pretty well, and made an intimidating impression on every jock or cheerleader that gave them dirty looks.  
  
"Damn, if Ah weren't still confined to the Institute Ah'd go trash one of their hangouts after school" Rogue said as another group of preps made audible insults while passing by.  
  
"If I weren't going on a mission latter, I'd help you" Wanda agreed, "What mission?" Kitty asked.  
  
"Mystique wants me to mess with the Acolytes, her 'connections' told her they'd be getting supplies at some hardware store this afternoon, so I get to find out why"  
  
Rogue perked up, "That sounds like a good reason to break the rules" they exchanged an evil grin, Kitty giggled, "Like, don't sweat it Rogue, Jean told Ororo who told Ray who told Bobby who told Jubes who told Amara who told Tabby who told me, that you get your freedom back today"  
  
Wanda glanced questioningly at Rogue, "Don't ask"  
  
"Well" Kitty continued, ignoring the comment, "The Professor was supposed to tell you this morning, but I guess he forgot, so you can, like, totally thank me for keeping in the gossip circle"  
  
"Thanks, seriously, and you're coming with us to kick some Acolyte ass" Rogue and Wanda laughed at Shadowcat's horrified expression, "We're not gonna kill 'em if that's what you're worried about, besides, Colossus is no fun to beat up anyway"  
  
Kitty relaxed, "In that case, I'm, like, all for it"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
The girls walked casually into a hardware store located far away from civilization, there were only five other people occupying the large storage building.  
  
"I thought you said there weren't any other muties with you" the head dealer was angry and nervous at the same time, the Acolytes glanced at the new arrivals.  
  
"No worries, mate, they ain't with us, we'll get rid of 'em" St. John powered up his flame thrower, but the two other men had already high-tailed it out of there.  
  
Rogue smirked, "Ah would say you have no reason to fight us now, Sugah, too bad for you, we're looking for some action"  
  
Gambit smirked and charged a card, "Someone say my name?" "Bring it on, Swamp Rat" "Anytime, Cher`e" and he tossed a Queen of Hearts at her.  
  
Rogue sent it right back at him and the battle began.  
  
Wanda used her Hex power to blow Pyro's fire in the other direction, Rogue flung Remy into a wall.  
  
"Is it just me or is this too easy?" Wanda asked, Rogue smiled, "They aren't very formidable opponents"  
  
"And you aren't as fun as the other girls" Gambit commented, "At least when they pin me against the wall.."  
  
Rogue waved her hand and Remy's mouth was instantly clamped together, he pouted, she smirked and walked over to him, "You talk to much, Cajun"  
  
*I'm open to doing other things* he projected seductively, *You never give up do you?* came her response.  
  
Before he could comment someone else joined their little group, "Well done girls" a familiar voice congratulated.  
  
"Mystique" Rogue hissed.  
  
Raven disregarded the harsh tone her daughter used, "Shadowcat, Rogue, what would you think about joining me?"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Before you say it, I know Wanda's memories were supposed to be erased/replaced, but this is AU, and I'm sorry this took so long, I was stumped, hope you liked it though, and please review:) 


	11. Becoming the mask, and a master's death

(A/N: Thanks bunches for the great reviews, keep 'em coming:)  
  
J.D.: "Had writer's block, sorry for the wait, you can blame it on Johnny boy"  
  
St. John: "Ain't no way 'm takin' the rap for this, mate, y'are on your own"  
  
J.D.: "Oh you'll take the blame, if you ever wanna get hooked up with Wanda"  
  
St. John: "I..you can't...that's no fair! Why couldn't the universe give me Gambit's roll? That friggin' lucky bloak is a practical god when it comes to the ladies"  
  
J.D.: "And you're a desperate Aussie that always gets the short end of the stick, poor baby, I just might let you play with your flame thrower after this chappy"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
A silence fell over the hardware store, Kitty and Rogue were both lost in thought.  
  
After a few minutes Mystique began to grow impatient, but not wanting to ruin her chance at successfully winning the two over, she kept quiet.  
  
Wanda watched Gambit, Colossus, and Pyro's reactions carefully, St. John obviously couldn't care less, Remy looked as if he desperately wanted to say something, though Rogue still had his mouth clamped shut, and Peter was staring with concern at Shadowcat.  
  
"Alright" Rogue's voice echoed loudly in the ears of everyone present, she glanced at Kitty who slowly nodded her head, "But only on our terms"  
  
Raven gave a cool nod, signaling her to proceed.  
  
"No battles against the X-men, and you have to stop harassing them" Rogue prepared herself for an argument, surprisingly none came.  
  
"Fine, go get your things and meet me at Destiny's old house" then she left.  
  
Weariness overcame the new BoM.  
  
Wanda, Rogue, and Kitty exchanged saddened looks, Wanda's was of sympathy, knowing how hard it would be for them to leave their family, having lost a mother and close friend herself.  
  
*Don't put yourself through this, Cher`e* Rogue flinched at Remy's plea in her head, she released her telekinetic hold on his body and he fell to the floor, "What's it to you, Swamp Rat?" she hissed.  
  
Before he could answer she grabbed Kitty by the hand, "Wanda, Ah think we'll need help packing"  
  
The Scarlet Witch came up beside them and her and Rogue put a comforting arm around a crying Kitty, heading back towards the mansion.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Irene hung her head in grief, she hadn't been able to get in contact with Rogue soon enough, now the girls would suffer great emotional pain.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------- Rogue motioned for Kitty and Wanda to head upstairs while she dealt with the rest of the X-men.  
  
"Rogue, you can't be serious" Kurt said, even as tears threatened to fall from his eyes, Rogue felt a stab of pain, *Why do ya'll have to make this so difficult?* out loud she said, "There's nothin' you can do to change our minds, not that some of you would want to" she glared pointedly at Jean and Scott.  
  
"Listen, Stripes, you know the consequences of rejoining Mystique so why are you doin' this?" asked Logan.  
  
"'Cause Ah don't want to live in a place that treats me like an eggshell, like Ah could break any moment, and because.." she trailed off, "All you need to know is Kitty and Ah are leaving" she stalked up to her room, no one followed, *What else were you expecting?* she thought bitterly.  
  
Kitty and Wanda had already gotten all their stuff packed, and without another word they were off, nobody tried to stop them.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Ororo rose in the air, her ice blue eyes flashing with anger than turned white, "Why did you not stop them?" lightning cracked outside in it's godess's fury, Logan unsheathed his claws with the same rage.  
  
"Yea, Chuck" he growled.  
  
Xavier raised his hands in attempt to calm the two teachers, "Rogue's choice to leave at this time, I sense, has to do with something much greater than her insecurities, if we were to go after her we would only be interfering with her search for completeness, I believe there is no cause to worry"  
  
Logan's eyes narrowed, but he relented, Storm, however, wasn't satisfied with the explanation for the Professor's lack of action, "That is Rogue, what about Katharine?"  
  
"Kitty and Rogue share a special bond, they are inseparable, they need each other to be near through this struggle" his answer was confident.  
  
Wolverine reached a hand up and gently tugged Ororo's ankle until she floated back down and the skies cleared, she still looked upset, leaning on Logan for support.  
  
"It's okay, Darlin'" he soothed, "They'll be back" he escorted her to her room, leaving a group of saddened students behind, too hurt over another loss to notice their mentors out of character behavior.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue sat in her old bedroom, head resting on Irene's shoulder, "Maybe Ah'm being selfish" the Goth confided, "Maybe Ah should've just kept it in"  
  
Destiny gave her a half hug, "You are not being selfish, dear, it's about time you did something for yourself, you can't keep these feelings bottled up forever, you need to face what's been eating you up all these years"  
  
"But you think it's bad for me to be doing Mystique's dirty work" Rogue had read Irene's feelings about the situation.  
  
"My first prediction was that it would bring nothing but disaster, now I see something else in your future, it'll be months before Raven is able to carry out her plan, so if you can find what you're looking for by then, you will be fulfilled"  
  
Rogue sighed and pulled out of her adoptive mother's embrace, "Ah better start unpakin'"  
  
Irene nodded and left.  
  
Rogue opened her duffel and pulled out her things, tossing them into her old dresser absently, she then went to the bathroom and studied her reflection in the mirror.  
  
Rogue felt cold, not the kind of cold you could melt off by cuddling in front of the fire, the cold that was her mask, her hard exterior, it was starting to seep inside her soul and would not be easily removed.  
  
She was becoming her mask.  
  
Rogue shook her head, turning from the Goth that was her, she headed towards Wanda's room, stopping at the door to listen in and hearing two familiar voices chatting quietly, the ghost of a once radiant smile appeared for the briefest instant on her lips.  
  
She walked into the room, her teammates pausing to acknowledge her as she sat on the bed with them and conversation started up again.  
  
"When do you think are fist mission's gonna be?" Kitty asked, she was surprised at how well the girl was taking this fast transition, she seemed much calmer then earlier, but Rogue of all people knew the very significant difference between "seem" and "was".  
  
"Knowing Mystique, probably sometime tonight" Rogue answered, Wanda agreed, "She told me we'd be up against the Acolytes again, apparently my father couldn't resist a challenge and has come out of hiding long enough for us to lure him into a trap"  
  
"If Mystique kills Magneto, like, tonight, then what's she gonna do?" Wanda gave the Valley girl a concerned expression, "You've never been in this line of work, have you?"  
  
Kitty shook her head, Rogue proceeded to explain, "Mystique doesn't want Magneto dead, she wants him to suffer, too many things went haywire with their past business relations. Plus she's still harboring a major grudge against the chrome-dome for a load personal reasons"  
  
"I'm the one that wants to kill my father anyway, if he sheds any blood, it will be on my hands" revenge clung thickly to the Scarlet Witches words.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
"Mystique has foiled my plot" Magneto said angrily, arms crossed, standing in front of his Acolytes, "But we shall not be intimidated, I have called a place for battle against her team, to test them, you will be fighting against a strong force, I trust you wont disapoint me"  
  
Gambit knew he would have no time to contemplate Rogue now, something bad was in the air, he pulled up his façade, wishing for everything in the world that he didn't have to do this.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
The new Brotherhood emerged from the shadows, clad in black, eyes narrowed, faces expressionless.  
  
They didn't waist a millisecond with pre-war pleasantries, immediately the fighting began.  
  
The landscape was a wide stretch of bare concrete, save for a few abandoned buildings scattered around, Wanda, upon not finding Magneto within sight, took on Sabertooth, rushing at him, then forwards flipping over his head when he made a grab for her, landing expertly behind him.  
  
Acolytes got the message right off, the girls were giving them a chance to prove themselves, instead of quickly taking them out with their powers, they were challenging them in hand-to-hand combat.  
  
An honorable gesture as far as Magneto was concerned so he instructed his team not to use their powers either, unless provoked.  
  
Kitty found herself trapped between Pyro and Colossus, she smirked, phased through a storage house behind her, making her way promptly to the roof in no time at all, then crouching on the edge, hidden by the shadows.  
  
When Peter and St. John got close enough to each other, St. John lit up his flame thrower to try and see her, but Kitty was too quick, she somersaulted through the air, grabbing onto the railing of the fire escape and swinging around it, her boots making contact with both boys faces.  
  
Rogue was currently facing down Gambit, feet spread in a fighting stance as they circled each other, neither daring to make the first move, their opponent was too unpredictable, and with both being brought up in the tricks of the trade, too predictable as well.  
  
Rogue finally saw her advantage, she back flipped, hands making contact on a crate, and with amazing agility, landed herself behind a dumpster.  
  
She pushed it towards him, only giving her a split-second's distraction, just enough to swipe his bo-staff and knock his legs out from under him.  
  
He was quick though, with speed that would've put Pietro to shame, jumping up and tossing a card at her feet, ignoring his boss's orders.  
  
Then it was as if everyone sensed the change in game strategy, to say all hell broke loose would have been an understatement, Gambit had worked on his mental shields, they were much stronger than earlier that afternoon.  
  
*Come prepared or leave dead* Rogue thought with dry humor, she discarded her telepathy, counting out mind control, and put extra doses of concentration into her telekinesis, easily lifting Remy in the air, but not so easily keeping him there.  
  
Throwing cards every chance he got put strain on her mental ability, so he began bobbing up and down as Rogue moved forward to absorb him.  
  
Mean while all Kitty could do was phase through Pyro and Peter's attempts to hurt her, and occasionally throw them a blow herself.  
  
Wanda on the other hand took out Sabertooth faster then a pile of weekend's trash at the Institute, he was hexed and unconscious before Mystique found Magneto's convenient hiding spot.  
  
Wanda clenched her teeth in rage that had been pent up for years, unleashing all her fury as soon as she saw her father's covered face.  
  
Buildings started to collapse, fire erupted everywhere, debris tumbled dangerously close to the mutants now caught in heated crossfire.  
  
Instinct took Rogue over immediately she allowed Remy to drop and grabbed his arm, "C'mon, Swamp Rat, this is gonna be one deadly reunion that we don't wanna stick around for"  
  
They passed Kitty who was phasing herself an the other two Acolytes through jagged metal and charred brick that feel from overhead, "Move it, Kitty- kat, soon's we get these goons outta here we're coming back for her!"  
  
Shadowcat knew better then to be offended by her friend's harsh tone, then needed to hurry so they could stop Wanda from killing herself.  
  
As soon as they got the others to safety they rushed back into the destruction and searched for their teammate.  
  
The Scarlet Witch stood over her father who was forced to his knees under all the unrestrained power she was throwing at him, "You will pay" her calm demeanor added a freaky aura to the scene of carnage she'd created around her.  
  
Rogue saw that it was too late, what was coming next was inevitable, Magneto, Eric Lensher/Maximoff, would die.  
  
Kitty and Rogue rushed out of the inferno.  
  
"Will she make it?" Kitty asked in desperate hope, after a pause Rogue answered with confidence, "Don't sweat it, Sugah, she'll be out before sunrise"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy woke up in an unfamiliar house, causing him instant alert.  
  
He was up with a charged card in hand, the motion going faster than Quicksilver could blink, "Unless you want the next ten years taken off your life span, Ah suggest you put that thing away, Swamp Rat"  
  
Rogue was leaning against the doorframe, glaring at him, one hand ungloved, he smirked as last night's events came back into his mind.  
  
He did as he was told and the card was flicked up his sleeve after discharging, he wasn't the least bit upset at that moment, in fact, he felt like singing, something along the lines of 'Ding-dong the bastard's gone'  
  
Rogue fought to keep down a smile at his thoughts, "Yea, he's dead, and Wanda's recovering" the momentary humor left her, she scowled.  
  
"What's wrong, Cher`e?" Rogue was suddenly in her mask again, "Nothin', Cajun" she left before he could question her further, that didn't keep him from following her though, he figured they weren't exactly on speaking terms.  
  
They came into the kitchen, Kitty, Irene, St. John, Mystique, and Peter were sitting at the table.  
  
It was a tense atmosphere.  
  
"I trust you will be going back to your semi-normal, pitiful lives after this" it was a statement more than a question that Mystique directed at the Acolytes.  
  
Gambit shot Rogue a 'look', she displayed absolutely no emotion on this comment, he sighed, "Oui" he murmured in response to Raven, although he doubted any of them would be able to go back to their lives before Magneto, and Xavier might not welcome them with open arms, so where that left him, well, for him and Colossus that all depended on two certain girls.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: I surprised myself with this chapter, I hope you guys liked it:) 


	12. no one understands

ATR: Freeverse: I'm not really into rock or anything, I hardly know about any of the groups you mentioned, I don't usually listen to Pop or Rock so I grabbed the next best thing that almost everyone else seemed to be using in the Rogue fics, I probably should have just used Country since that's my fav. type of music. Anyway, about Gambit and her being too close in the beginning, I get your meaning, but I really hadn't been planning to go anywhere with this fic, the chapters just kept piling up and I decided to post. Thanks for reviewing, though.  
  
Wolviesfan: Now that you mention it, Logan was acting OOC, guess I missed that when I re-read and edited my chap, in future parts I'll try to get his character down better.  
  
(A/N: Love ya'll, thank you soooo much for RnRing my fic, sorry this took sooooo long to update) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue, Kitty, and Wanda sat in Rogue's room discussing how they would break the news of Magneto's death to Pietro, Mystique had gone back to Bayville to 'reclaim' the old Brotherhood and if she was feeling gracious enough, she would leave it up to the girls to tell them what happened.  
  
The Acolytes were staying at the house still, surprisingly on Irene's insistence, this, of course, made Kitty practically ecstatic.  
  
Wanda had been acting weird, ever since she woke up she seemed to be on auto-pilot, spaced out, as if she couldn't believe it was over, she'd spent so much time on revenge and increasing hatred towards her father, now she doesn't know where to go from here.  
  
Rogue was solemn, taking all this in, finally deciding that she should be the one to speak Pietro about it, neither of her friends were in any condition to carry out the task.  
  
"Ah'll tell him" her announcement fell on death ears, she sulked in the silence, thinking on her own problems, *What a nice, depressed, mentally dysfunctional team we make*  
  
Well she had to exclude Kitty from the depressed part, the girl was off in la la land, probably wondering what color to paint her and Peter's picket fence house.  
  
So the three stayed like that for a while, until they heard commotion downstairs, Kitty and Wanda both looked pleadingly over at Rogue, who sighed and floated slowly out the door, shutting and locking it behind her.  
  
She took her time coming down into the living room, Gambit, Pyro, and Colossus casually standing or leaning against various parts near the exists, trying to inconspicuously block the old Brotherhood's way out.  
  
Mystique left the room as soon as Rogue entered, Irene was nowhere to be found, *They ain't making this easy on me* she thought grudgingly, she glanced at Quicksilver's confused face, he was obviously wondering when exactly Raven gained permission to boss them around.  
  
"Where's my father" he instantly demanded, Rogue clenched her teeth, deciding to just come out and say it, "He's dead" she didn't offer any explanation, just raced quickly back up to her room, letting the Acolytes deal with the BoM's reaction.  
  
After what seemed like a million long, agonizing hours of silence, there was pounding on her door, Wanda unconsciously scooted farther back on the bed, Rogue winced, Kitty jumped.  
  
"ROGUE!!!"  
  
*Don't kill the messenger!* she shot telepathically, she went to the door and hurridly slipped out, again locking it behind her.  
  
There stood Pietro, his clear blue eyes searching her emerald ones, as if begging it not to be true, Rogue wavered under his gaze, she finally had to look away, this was wrong, it was just wrong.  
  
Without giving it another thought, the Goth reached out and squeezed Pietro's hands with her gloved ones, guiding him into the next room and turned to glare at Remy, warning him not to come in.  
  
Quicksilver dropped to his knees in the middle of the floor, stunned, then the tears came, Rogue knelt beside him, bringing him into an embrace, careful not to make skin contact.  
  
He clung to her like a lifeline, like she had clung to Gambit not so long ago.  
  
It was then Rogue realized something, both Maximoff children had built their lives around their father, in one way or another, everything they did came back to him, one wanted his attention and would give the universe to live up to his expectations, the other wanted to put him through all the suffering she'd done at his hand.  
  
Now, the core of what each teen had wasted their life working on, was gone, there was a void of doubt that settled in the master of magnetism's passing, where would they go from here? How do they build a new foundation out of so much grief and trauma?  
  
Rogue found herself hating the man even more then when he was alive, how could he have done this to his own kids? He'd played them like pawns, they had never known a world that didn't have something to do with him, it would be hard for both to move on.  
  
Eventually, Pietro cried himself to sleep, Rogue lifted him gently with her TK and set him on the bed, taking his shoes off and pulling the covers up around him, she sat on the edge and brushed some hair away from his face.  
  
She leaned forward and lightly brushed her lips on his forehead, feeling the slightest absorption, insuring that he would stay asleep longer then his metabolism usually allowed.  
  
Then she crept quietly out, shutting the door and nearly colliding with Gambit, she saw the questions flash in his eyes but she didn't wanna deal with him right then, so she zipped into her room with Quicksilver's speed before he had a chance to make the tiniest sound.  
  
She saw that Wanda and Kitty had snuck off to their own rooms during the moment she'd been comforting Pietro, she sighed and laid on her bed, falling into her mindscape. She closed her eyes, soaking up the old familiar smells around her, the peacful solitude of that small country home, she was young again, free from humanity, no one but her.  
  
Suddenly, Rogue heard a low chuckle emanating from the deep recesses of her mind, she managed to hold back her tremors when she recognized who it was, she was tugged, once again, through her mindscape, *This shouldn't be happening!* she cursed.  
  
"*No need to worry, my dear, I am simply here to help*"  
  
Rogue highly doubted that, but she knew he wouldn't try to take her body over, he could've at any time, though he never seemed compelled to.  
  
"*What do you want?*" her tone was more wary than harsh, she just realized how exhausted she was from all that'd been going on lately, not really allowing herself a break since she absorbed the person standing before her.  
  
"*You've been stressing too much over the details, I am here to provide you with the full perspective, a bird's-eye-view of your recent predicament*" Mesmero explained.  
  
Rogue frowned, out of confusion and surprise, confused that he would want to help her and surprised that his intentions seemed sincere, "*Why?*"  
  
"*How do I put this?*" he put a finger to his chin and tapped it rhythmatically, Rogue almost had to smile at the childish demeanor the action gave him, he was starting to look more like the college student from his memories.  
  
"*See when you absorbed me*" his voice broke into her musings and she forced herself to become more serious, "*You did me a favor, I would have been forever trapped in Apocalypse's hold, been a mindless puppet, caused the destruction of so much, but you, in a way, rescued me from that personal hell*"  
  
Rogue was taken aback at his words, for a while she couldn't speak, how could her wretched curse, being the tormenting trap for so many psychs, now be someone's liberation?  
  
This was totally different from the usual reaction she got from the people she absorbed, they always tormented her for as long as they could, making her drown in guilt and self-hatred until their voices faded along with her use of their powers.  
  
He smiled a little at her stunned silence, "*So it would only be right if I helped you in your current affairs*" he finished.  
  
The Goth bit her lip, "*What've Ah got to lose?*" she smirked, "*Alright, what exactly have Ah been looking for, Ah was pretty content with life, accepting my powers and all, then Ah cracked*"  
  
"*It's because you never truly came to terms with it, the isolation, the loneliness, and now that he's here, I doubt you ever will*" Mesmero answered.  
  
Rogue scowled, knowing full well who he was talking about, "*What's that Swamp Rat got to do with anything*"  
  
"*He is just like you, pushing his feelings aside until they become too hard to cope with, not dealing with them, always hiding, never letting anyone see who he really is, but most importantly, he's lonely as well, and when you met, the defense broke, and the bond started*"  
  
"*What bond?*" she asked bitterly, "*And how can he be lonely, how could he even know the meaning of the word! No one knows, no one understands, never being able to touch another person, wanting to, taking one low blow after another when you see the others kissing, holding, caressing without anything keeping them back, then having the thing you want most turned into some horrific nightmare! Violation is even worse than isolation! How would he understand, the guy probably lost his virginity at fourteen with the way the girls attract to him like a magnet!!!*"  
  
Mesmero was unfazed by her outburst, he let her calm down before continuing, "*You will never know how he can understand if you keep pushing him away, can't you see? The reason why it was so easy to open up to him, when with any other person you would have turned away, that's why it didn't hurt to show him your scars*"  
  
Rogue was hardly convinced, and she would not take the risk, sure, it hadn't hurt, but what if Mesmero was wrong, she would be putting herself in a vulnerable position, and she hated that concept worse than any other twisted option the universe had to offer.  
  
"*What Ah did was a mistake, Ah wasn't thinking clearly, for Christ sakes he's the enemy! Back to my first question, what bond?*"  
  
"*You feel him, even without my---your powers, it's too late for you to start closing off now, just try it, come out from the mask before it consumes you*"  
  
Rogue threw her hands up in exasperation, "*See? This is one of the many reasons why Ah never open up to anybody, it gets turned into such a big friggin' deal, is it such a crime?! Ah slipped, poured my heart out to the first person that came along, and it ends like this, why do my demons insist on tormenting me?*"  
  
Mesmero sighed, "*As I said, you are one in the same, that is why you've connected*"  
  
"*Urrggh, let me back into the real world*" she didn't want this to happen, she was never going to let some ego inflated Cajun waltz passed her barriers into everything she had worked so hard to keep hidden, just because Apocalypse's former flunky decided to go mentor and evaluate her ever confusing life.  
  
He was reluctant to follow her command, but knew that he was getting nowhere by keeping her here until she took his advice, so he complied, hoping to find another way to show her.  
  
Rogue ran out the door the second her eyes opened. Thoughts running through her brain a mile a minute, she tried to shake the cold feeling that crept through her, her mask was perfectly in place.  
  
BAMF, Kurt grabbed her and soon they were outside, a few miles away from the house, surrounded by rolling hills and open fields.  
  
"KURT!" she glared at him in annoyance, but he stood his ground, "I vant answers, sister"  
  
Rogue sank to her knees in exasperation, letting her brother wrap an arm around her shoulders, he didn't hesitate in cutting to the chase, "Vhy are you vith our mother?"  
  
She never had given him an explanation, she hadn't known herself, now it was only semi-clear to her, "Ah couldn't stay any longer, Kurt, Ah didn't find all that Ah needed at the Institute"  
  
"Vhat do you need?" he was concerned, and a little hurt that she hadn't confided in him earlier, she glanced away, then gestured around her, "This" she said, "Ah need a place where Ah can deal with my problems, Ah don't know who my demons are anymore, all Ah know is Ah can't keep handling them the way Ah have been or Ah'll break down again"  
  
He sighed, "Does this mean you vont be coming back?" she shook her head, "Ah will, just not anytime soon" *Maybe Mesmero was right about one thing, I should get out of my mask before it consumes me, that was how I used to do things and look where it's gotten me*  
  
"Alright" he said, a hint of sadness in his voice, "But I'll be coming to check on you guys, everyone's worried"  
  
Rogue smiled, *Whoa, my face feels like it forgot how to do that* "So long as you don't bring Logan here in a slice-and-dice mood"  
  
He grinned, then gave her a mock serious expression, "I might if any of those idiots in there lays a finger on you"  
  
Her smile widened, "Aren't Ah so lucky to have a brother" they embraced before he teleported away.  
  
Rogue headed back towards the house, feeling a little better and less confused, now that she realized why she had truly accepted Mystique's offer, praying that she would know how to handle this, wondering if maybe now the constant self-torment would stop.  
  
She felt warm, the ice on her soul had somewhat melted.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy had to do a double take as Rogue came back inside, she actually looked happy for once, not exactly light-hearted, just temporarily happy.  
  
"Mon Dieu, what have you done with Rogue?" he looked at her comically, wide- eyed and jaw-dropped.  
  
She rolled her eyes but the small lift at the corners of her mouth remained, "Do me a favor and throw yourself off a cliff, Swamp Rat"  
  
He flashed her that sexy smirk, "Anything for the lady, but I was thinkin' something more romantic" he raised an eyebrow suggestively.  
  
She stood in front of him for a moment, arms crossed, giving him the once over as if she were considering the unspoken offer.  
  
He was about to produce another witty comment when she uncrossed her arms and proceeded to walk proudly by him without a second thought, at least that's what it seemed, then he felt her fist make contact with his stomach and he doubled over, she grinned and left him to wallow in pain.  
  
St. John conveniently happened to walk in at the same time this action took place, and he unceremoniously fell to the floor laughing, "So much for...the..Ragin' Cajun" he managed to gasp out before exploding into another round of giggles.  
  
"I just have to work on this femme a bit, I still be great with the women, 'sides, I love a challenge" he said in his defense.  
  
"Yea, sure mate" Pyro said after gaining his composure and grinning at his annoyed companion, "I think you're just losin' your touch and don't wanna admit it"  
  
Remy smirked, but had learned a while ago that any debate with the insane Aussie was pointless, *Besides, I got me a girl to charm* he thought with a wicked grin, making the short trek to Rogue's room.  
  
He found the door slightly ajar and stuck his head in, she was lounging back on her bed reading a book, quickly concealing it when she noticed she had a visitor.  
  
"Ever heard of knockin'" she lashed out angrily, sitting up, but he saw through her mask as a cover for her embarrassment, he smiled, that could be used to his advantage.  
  
"Where's the fun in that?" he asked, coming to sit beside her, she reflexively scooted farther away, he easily moved in further, tactfully cornering her, she frowned but made no movement to push him away just yet.  
  
"What were you reading?" he said mock conversationally, he'd already seen the title of the book, noting it was the cause of her previous embarrassment.  
  
"You tell me" she stated, turning to face him, leaning against the headboard, her action left her in a vulnerable position, she was daring him to get closer, challenging him to find out the consequences.  
  
Remy was surprised by this change in behavior, although something told him he shouldn't be, it had been subtly going on since she'd shown up that fateful morning at the mansion door after spending the night in the woods, she didn't seem so afraid of possible contact anymore, the romance novel she'd been reading didn't interest him now, he could use it as blackmail later.  
  
"Why were you out that night, Cher`e?"  
  
Rogue's eyes widened slightly, "What are you talkin' about, Cajun?" he gave her a look, "You know full well, mon amour" *Whoa, where did THAT come from!?* his mind went on the instinctive defense.  
  
Rogue was as stunned by his choice of endearment as he was, but she shrugged it off, categorizing it as one of his many, to-impress-the-ladies, lines, she returned to the subject at hand, "Ah.....uhhhhhhh" she caught his intense gaze and tried not to squirm.  
  
*Damn, why can't I think of a good lie?* her mind shouted a few reasons, she ignored them, knowing that if she said anything the truth would spill out, just looking at him made her want to tell him everything.  
  
So she opted for silence, Remy shifted on the bed, scooting so close they were barely inches apart.  
  
Rogue tried to not get lost in his gaze and the warmth emanating from his body, she broke eye contact, "Touch shouldn't hurt" she whispered, an ache rising in her throat.  
  
"You wouldn't understand, Ah've wanted ta touch for a pathetically long time, but those bastard guards made my first intimate contact a living hell. Ah guess Ah should be grateful for that in some twisted, sick way, it showed me that Ah would never be able to feel loved or wanted or close to another person, that even without my power Ah'd be just someone the world shoved in a corner until the needed to use me for their personal gain" "Cher`e" he whispered, he noticed she wasn't crying, in fact she had a calm acceptance on her face, that frightened him worse than any other reaction he wished he'd gotten to her soul pouring, she was actually telling herself she was worthless.  
  
He made her look at him, his hands clamped gently but firmly on her shoulders, "Quit telling yourself those things, Rogue, I know what it feels like to have touch hurt, I used to be just an orphan livin' on the streets of New Orleans, the only way to earn money was to be a thief, or...." he trailed off, knowing she would catch his meaning.  
  
Rogue looked down, her hair falling in front of her face, "Ah know Ah'm not the only one with problems, Cajun" she glanced back up, "But how many people can say they've never, physically, felt loved"  
  
"There's more to love than touch, Cher`e, 'bout time someone taught you that" he answered.  
  
Rogue pulled away from him, moving to the other side of the bed and getting up, she crossed her arms with her back still to him, "Better to 'have loved and lost than not loved at all', right? And 'those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it', well Ah learned from my history, and Ah won't let what happened to Cody happen to anyone else" with that she left the room.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda headed down to the kitchen, she had vowed not to risk running into Toad, but she was dying of hunger and needed to eat.  
  
She glanced cautiously around the energetic room, Lance, Fred, Peter, Kitty, Irene, and St. John were the only ones in there.  
  
Kitty was flirting with Peter, Lance was staring at them with an unreadable expression, and Fred and St. John were wolfing down a box of doughnuts Irene had placed on the table.  
  
Wanda put on her usual scowl and fell into her usual silence, going over and scanning through the fridge.  
  
She pulled out a few ingredients for a sandwich and absently began making the snack while contemplating recent events, mostly the death of her father, she had finally decided what she was going to do, stay with Mystique and the new Brotherhood, she really had no better option.  
  
Wanda would ever join the X-men, too many preps and goody-goodies, it was either stay on her own or fight for Mystique, she really didn't care either way, she'd gotten over one major hurtle in her life, and it had given her the thing she'd most craved, peace.  
  
No more surges of unprovoked anger, no more unwanted frustration, the moment she had seen her father breathe his last breath, all those self- tormenting emotions died with him.  
  
The Scarlet Witch looked up as Rogue came into the kitchen followed by Gambit, The two Goth girls made eye contact, exchanging silent words as Rogue made herself lunch while Remy leaned against a counter watching her.  
  
*What's up with him?* Wanda projected, *We had a little chat about there being more to love than touch* Rogue answered.  
  
Wanda's scowl deepened, *He never gives up does he?* she heard Rogue's mental sigh, *He understands me, well at least as much as anyone can, but Ah'm not gonna let him go any further than he already has, once he gets bored of me he'll move onto the next skirt*  
  
Wanda smirked, *Men like him always do* she glanced over at the snake charmer, who was still studying Rogue, *But you might want to give this one a chance, there's just something about him that makes me think he'll stick around*  
  
Just then, an unwelcome voice interrupted the telepathic conversation she was having with her friend, "There you are, Snookums" a grinning Todd hopped up beside her, The Scarlet Witch growled, "Back off, wart face"  
  
"Awww, I thought you'd be happier now that Mags is dead, oh well, I can cheer you up, Cuddlebumps" he continued as Wanda sat next to Pyro, Rogue sat across from her and shot over a sympathetic look.  
  
"Leave me alone you disgusting, slime infested, skunk smelling, idiot!" despite her insult Todd wouldn't back down, he flicked his tongue out in front of her, "Like, ewwww, GROSS!" Kitty screeched.  
  
"I think you need a lesson in manners" St. John stepped in, grabbing Todd by his collar and pushing him against the nearest wall, "It ain't nice to annoy a shiela like that, mate, if you know what's best for you, you'll high tail it out of here 'fore I burn your little hide"  
  
Toad gulped, "Y-yea, sure" Pyro let him go with a smug smile, then he turned to Wanda, "Let me know if he gives you any more trouble"  
  
All three girls raised their eyebrows and exchanged amused glances, *This is new* Wanda thought, *Things could get interesting around here*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Again I'm sorry for the wait, my muse was taking a sick day---make that month, I had a serious case of writer's block, thanks to all of you who reviewed:) 


	13. Road Trip

(A/N: Thanxies for all the reviews, love you guys:-)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda stood in front of the door to the room her brother was staying in, she took a deep breath and counted to three, she knew she had to talk to him, he hadn't come out since yesterday afternoon, hadn't even made a sound, which was completely unlike him, but that came as no surprise.  
  
She swallowed hard, summoning all her courage, then knocked.  
  
No answer, she knocked again.  
  
Not so much as a murmur, she growled, "Alright, Pietro, we'll do this the hard way" she tried the doorknob, it was locked, she hexed it and entered the room.  
  
Quicksilver was sitting on the edge of the bed, starring at his feet, she walked over and stood in front of him, hands on her hips.  
  
"Look, I don't know what kind of twisted relationship you had with Magneto that would make you miss him this badly, hell I can't figure out what made you work for him in the first place, but I'm not going to let you waist your next eighteen years mourning his death. He's gone. Deal with it. But don't stay up here moping, he was a power-hungry lunatic and a cold-blooded killer, humans aren't the only ones who'll be better off without him"  
  
That being said, she turned to go, but stopped when she heard her brother muttered something, "What?"  
  
"I said, he was still our father" his voice was hoarse and strained, Wanda didn't turn around as the sentence escaped his mouth.  
  
Silence followed his words, then, "No, Pietro, he was never a father"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Kitty sat extremely still on the arm of the couch, her legs were crossed and her hands were folded in her lap, she had her eyes diverted to the right of her as if she were looking at something, a hint of a smile was on her lips.  
  
"Beautiful, very good" Peter said as he started to sketch the image in his art pad, she was posing for one of his pictures, he'd asked her that morning if she would and she'd eagerly agreed, right in front of Lance, the scowl on the rock tumbler's face had been priceless.  
  
She really didn't see why he was so upset, sure they'd had a nasty breakup, and it still hurt her when she thought about it, but she wasn't gonna let it get in the way of her having a life, she deserved to be happy and he needed to move on.  
  
Rogue walked in with her portable CD player and was bopping her head to the beat, singing out loud as the music blasted through her headphones, "Ah've got some pain to kill, hurt to heal, anything Ah hafta do Ah will, so come on ba-"  
  
The Goth girl stopped abruptly when she caught a glimpse of what Peter was doing, she flicked off her tunes, much to Kitty's relief, her friend had a great voice but the singing was distracting her and she didn't want to mess up the pose.  
  
Rogue started glancing at her then back at Peter's art pad, the same as Peter was doing, Kitty was dying to ask why but Colossus had told her it was vital that she be completely unmoving in order for him to get the picture just right.  
  
Rogue began gesturing to the sketch, muttering stuff that Kitty couldn't hear, they got into a whispered conversation then Peter commented out loud, "I never knew you were a fellow artist"  
  
Rogue shrugged, "Ah doodle here and there, nothing special", he raised an eyebrow, "I highly doubt that, perhaps when I am done here you would allow me to see some of your work?"  
  
"Sure" she answered, "Maybe you can show me yours as well" he nodded, "It would be my pleasure"  
  
Rogue grinned, "That is if you and Kitty don't have other plans" she shot Kitty a questioning look.  
  
"Nope, it's, like, cool" the Valley girl answered, only moving her mouth, she really wasn't all that happy about it, she'd wanted to ask Peter if he would go into town with her, but how long could flipping through a few sketches take?  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda sat on Irene's porch swing, her knees pulled up to her chin and her arms hanging loosely around her ankles.  
  
She couldn't remember the last time she had been in this position, she'd only curled up like this when she felt alone with her pain, she had never felt alone when she was younger and still living with her father and brother, pained yes, but never alone.  
  
It was because Pietro had always been there, they had always looked out for each other during those long nights when her parents would be downstairs fighting, when the sound of murderous threats wafted through the air vents and heart-wrenching sobs shattered any hope of a peaceful night ever settling on the Maximoff house.  
  
Wanda knew her dad had beat her mother, when she rebelled against him he couldn't stand it, so he hit her, to make himself feel in control and superior, it happened every time she disagreed with his plans.  
  
The Scarlet Witch seethed, barely succeeding in keeping her powers from going haywire, the flashbacks she was having were renewing her burning hatred towards Magneto, she could never miss such an iron cold man.  
  
Her mom had been a gentle, caring, beautiful, patient woman, she deserved a far better life than she'd gotten.  
  
Wanda remembered the nights when Magneto had been working late, her mother would come into her room and they would have quiet talks about nice things, things that would take their minds off their hardships.  
  
Wanda closed her eyes and called up a mental image of her mom, she was gorgeous: long, coal-black hair, deep brown eyes that swam with kindness and wisdom seemingly beyond reach, delicate pale skin with a natural rosy hue in her cheeks.  
  
Her mom had never liked makeup, she once told Wanda, "People have already slipped behind enough masks and emotional shields that no one can tell the difference between reality and deception, makeup's just another elaborate way of covering up who you truly are"  
  
Wanda had clung to every word her mother had said and followed all her advice, but when her mother died, all that, that last star in the sky, that last candle lighting the way through a dark, depressing forest, died with her.  
  
Wanda felt tears sting her eyes, the sensation was unfamiliar, she hadn't cried since the day her father had locked her up in the asylum.  
  
Now she couldn't hold back the unwelcome moisture that trickled down her cheeks, she wiped at it furiously, but that only resulted in a stained sleeve and an exposed face.  
  
Realizing that all her makeup was gone made her tears increase in their insistent flow, "I'm sorry mom" she whispered, "I'm sorry that I covered up who I was, I'm sorry for everything that he did to you"  
  
Wanda heard someone coming, she tired to compose herself in time, which was a futile attempt because the person was already at her side, a comforting arm wrapped around her shoulders and a gloved hand squeezed hers.  
  
The Scarlet Witch rested her head on Rogue's forearm, finding herself glad for the assuring embrace.  
  
Then the front door opened and Kitty stepped out, the perky girl was about to say something when she saw the scene in front of her, she quickly came over and sat on the other side of Wanda, hugging her as well.  
  
Soon the girl stopped crying, the three girls sat there like that, looking out onto the miles of farmland, still closed in a tight embrace, and Wanda knew that she wasn't alone with her pain, all three of them knew what it was to be alone, feel worthless, and hate yourself or another person with unspeakable malice.  
  
All three of them would be there for each other no matter what, that was the unspoken promise when they'd first started bonding, and unlike the other promises in their lives, this one would not be broken.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Later that day Rogue was sitting with Peter on the porch steps, they were looking over each other's artwork and commenting on how good it was while Kitty leaned against the doorframe tapping her foot impatiently.  
  
"This one is very lovely" Colossus said, pointing to Rogue's most recent picture of Angel, she glanced at it while turning to another page in Peter's tablet, "Ah could say the same for this one" she tapped the now finished sketch of Kitty sitting on the couch arm.  
  
"Awww, what's this?" Gambit came towards them, he'd just finished exploring some parts of the land Irene owned, and was ready to relax from the excessive amount of walking he'd done by teasing his favorite girl.  
  
Rogue quickly closed her pad and handed back Peter's, Colossus followed suit, they were both protective of who saw the stuff they drew, Rogue because art was her way of expressing herself and she revealed herself to an extremely scarce amount of people, Peter mostly out of shyness.  
  
"C'mon, show me what your hiding, Petite" Remy coaxed, trying to snatch the notebook out of her hands, she jumped up and dodged out of his reach, "Back off, Swamp Rat, Ah'm warning you"  
  
He gave her his best puppy dog expression, "Pleeeeeaaasssseeee, with whipped cream and sugar and chocolate syrup a la Remy"  
  
Rogue cringed in disgust, "Ugh, do you want to make me incurably sick with eternal nightmares haunting my mind?"  
  
He grinned, "That depends, the nightmares be about me?"  
  
Rogue growled and began backing into the house, "Don't flatter yourself" she turned on her heel and raced inside, knowing he was right behind her, she suddenly skidded to a stop and whirled to face him.  
  
He came closer, but found he couldn't get more than a foot farther, she grinned, "Telepathic barrier"  
  
He pouted, she went the rest of the way to her room and put her pad in her dresser drawer, sealing the hiding spot with a telekinetic force field so he couldn't steal it when she wasn't in there.  
  
Rogue came out of her room and headed back outside with a satisfied smile, St. John, Wanda, and Lance had joined Remy, Kitty, and Peter on the porch.  
  
"I'm bored" Kitty whined, "Lets go into town", everyone agreed, "Ah think Ah'll stay here" Rogue said, Gambit frowned, "C'mon, Cher`e, you don't get out enough"  
  
"Yea, if I have to put up with these losers so do you" stated Wanda, the Scarlet Witch hooked arms with the other Goth girl, "We don't have to go near Bayville, in fact we don't have to go near New York at all, there's plenty of states with plenty of clubs in road trip range"  
  
Rogue smirked, "Well, Mystique is going to be gone for a while, Ah'd say we've got 'bout a week at the least" Wanda knew what that evil twinkle in her friend's eyes meant, "Lets show these guys how to really party, Goth style"  
  
"Uh-oh" Kitty murmured leaning over to whisper in Peter's ear, "You guys are, like, so in for it"  
  
"What are we waitin' for?" John asked, "Lets get crackin'"  
  
"Wait" Rogue held up her hand, "Shouldn't we ask the others if they want to come?" Wanda shook her head, "No way in hell am I gonna have Toad tagging behind me twenty-four-seven while I'm clubbin'"  
  
"And Fred's, like, too much of a burden" Kitty added, Rogue nodded, "Pietro wont be much fun, either" Rogue glanced at Avalanche, he'd been silent through the whole thing.  
  
"Lance isn't coming" she decided out loud, earning her a glare from said person, *Until you can stop wallowing in self-pity and get over your breakup, Ah'm not letting you anywhere near Kitty*  
  
He clenched his jaw with her projected message and mumbled some comment about needing a rest, then went inside.  
  
Kitty shot Rogue a grateful glance.  
  
"So this only leaves two obstacles" everyone looked towards Remy expectantly, "Money and transportation" he licked his lips and rubbed his hands together, a devilish glint in his eyes.  
  
"Hold your horses, cowboy" Rogue raised a hand, "Don't go gettin' any ideas that we're gonna let you steal our required necessities, 'sides, Ah've got as much money as we'll be needing for this. As for a vehicle, follow me" she motioned them down the porch and around the house where an old garage stood.  
  
Fishing a key out of a concealed pocket in her black stretch pants, Rogue knelt down and felt for the small lock at the bottom of the garage door, she could almost see Remy's eyes traveling along her body and she tried not to blush.  
  
Finally she found the distinctive metal design poking out just above the grass, she fit the key in and turned, a clicking was heard and Rogue slipped her hands under the entryway, lifting it up.  
  
A few whistles and approving comments came from the group at what they saw, two cars and one motorcycle.  
  
One of the cars was a mustang convertible painted a sleek black with two silver stripes running down it's hood and trunk, the other was a navy blue jeep, and the motorcycle had a fire pattern swirling on it's chrome sides.  
  
"There's a truck in the barn if ya'll don't want any of these" Rogue said teasingly, everyone starred at her, then went back to admiring the cars.  
  
"How can you afford these?" Gambit asked, she smirked, "Irene and Mystique are kinda like the Professor, they have an endless supply of cash in a high security bank account that Ah doubt even Bobby could hack into"  
  
"Is that how you are getting the money we need?" Peter climbed into the driver's seat of the convertible as Rogue shook her head to his question, "Ah've got my own recourses"  
  
"That was, like, cryptic" Kitty observed phasing into the backseat, Rogue shrugged.  
  
"C'mon, we'd better get packing if we want to hit the road sometime today" Wanda said, they all headed back to the house and up to their rooms.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
An hour later everyone was ready to go, Rogue had three hundred dollars in her wallet and a lot more tucked away in her duffel, she was saying goodbye to Irene and promising to be back within eleven days.  
  
The group climbed into the convertible, Rogue in the driver's seat, Remy riding shotgun and the others squeezed into the back.  
  
There was one person too many to fit in a five-seater, so Kitty was sitting on Peter's lap while Wanda and St. John couldn't avoid being pushed together, "Ain't this a cozy arrangement" Pyro said with a goofy smile, Wanda grunted and folded her arms across her chest.  
  
"I'm, like, totally enjoying it" Kitty commented snuggling closer to Peter.  
  
Rogue rolled her eyes and revved the engine, "Alright, here we go!"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Again I'm sorry for the slow update, I can't promise they'll be getting faster, not exactly writer's block, just short attention span, I've got some pretty good ideas, just worried that they're not very consistent with what I've got so far. Anyway, enough rambling, love you, love you, love you, for all the reviews:) 


	14. Cody!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue was coursing with energy and adrenalin, being able to drive in the country with no traffic and no police for miles to site you for speeding, always did this to her.  
  
The local country station was blaring Terri Clark and Kitty had finally stopped complaining about the musical selection, the top was down and the wind danced wildly with Rogue's short hair causing her white streaks to mingle with her reddish-brown strands.  
  
The scenery that surrounded them was incredible, the only structures were placed within miles of each other, all the open space was exhilarating, Rogue looked in the review mirror, Wanda was obviously enjoying herself, *Good* the Goth thought, *She was really upset this morning*  
  
She spared Remy a sideways glance only to find him looking at her, "What?" she asked, expecting some smart-alack, cocky reply, he smiled, "Just enjoying the beautiful view, Cher`e"  
  
She narrowed her eyes and turned her attention back to the road, a few minutes later the first signs of a town began to show, the houses got closer together and more vehicles were passing them.  
  
Rogue slowed to the required speed limit and pulled into the nearest gas station that was next to an AM/PM, a lanky young man who looked to be about fifteen, came over, "Regular unleaded, Sugah" she said, flashing him an award winning grin.  
  
The boy turned to mush automatically and went about his task, constantly sneaking glances at Rogue, receiving unnoticed glares from Gambit, Rogue smirked, *Too easy* she slipped out her wallet and got out a fifty, turning and handing it to Wanda, addressing both her and St. John.  
  
"You two go get us some junk food, the big stores aren't gonna be around for at least another forty-five miles, we'll need something to hold us off" Wanda smirked, "C'mon Aussie" Pyro frowned at the nickname, but followed her without a word as she jumped out of the car and headed into the AM/PM.  
  
"That'll be eighteen twenty-six" said the gas boy after dislodging the pump, Rogue gave him a twenty, "Keep the change, Doll" she winked before starting up the engine again and driving the short distance to park in front of the AM/PM.  
  
Just for kicks, Rogue glanced in the review mirror to see the dreamy expression on the boy's face before one of his co-workers hit him in the back of the head to snap him out of it.  
  
She couldn't hold back the amused smile, she was still in her usual Gothic attire and all she had to do was adjust her attitude a little to get a guy to fall for her, *See, you enjoy being out of your mask* a familiar voice observed in her head, her smirk returned, *It is kinda fun, Ah liked seeing Remy get all protective*  
  
*I don't blame him, you're a lovely girl, he's going to have some real competition* Rogue blushed slightly, *Yea right, Ah'm sure every guy's gonna flock to me. Come on, Mes, it's a stupid notion*, *Not from wear I'm standing, and I am sure mister LeBeau would agree, child*  
  
Just then Wanda and St. John came out with a load of snacks weighing them down, they piled everything in the back seat and Wanda started calling out the names of each item to see who wanted what, "Cheetos: Twisted, Regular, and Extra cheesy, Lays: Barbecue, Ranch, Sour cream and Onion, and Original, Chilly dogs and every topping you can imagine that would go with them, for dessert: Ding Dongs, Kit-Kats, Brownies, and doughnuts"  
  
Immediately after her tally, chaos ensued, St. John and Rogue both grabbed for the chilly dogs, Remy fought Peter for the Barbecue Lays when Wanda held up an extra bag which was promptly removed from her possession, Kitty grabbed some Twisted Cheetos and two Ding Dong packets, Rogue scooped up the brownies and gave a handful to Wanda and Gambit, Peter snuck out all the chocolate doughnuts from one of the boxes before Pyro grabbed it and complained about there not being any éclairs, Kitty handed him the other box of doughnuts and his face lit up when he saw his favorite treat among the selection.  
  
Soon everything settled down and Rogue drove out of the tiny parking lot back onto the road while Wanda passed out Root Beer and everyone ate, Kitty and Peter talked about music and school in between bites, St. John and Wanda discussed their powers and exchanged battle stories, Rogue drove with one hand and ate with the other, occasionally setting down her food to steady the wheel.  
  
After a few minutes of silence up front, Remy tried to strike up a conversation, "So where did you get all that money we needed?" he half expected her to tell him to mind his own business, but surprisingly, he got an answer.  
  
"Before my parents kicked me out, Ah used to do small jobs for my neighbors, they owned a convenience store in town a couple miles from where we lived and their son was my best friend, the two of us got paid for stocking the shelves and stuff. By the time my powers manifested, Ah had at least four hundred dollars including my weekly allowance. Irene found me and took me in, then showed me how to invest my cash wisely, she opened a private account for me. Then Ah started working odd jobs after joining the Brotherhood and X-men, what Ah have with me now is from that, it's only pocket money, the big bucks are in my account"  
  
Remy's eyes widened, she had at least two thousand dollars with her, and that was only pocket money!!! *I wonder how much cash she has in her account....*  
  
Rogue smirked at his thought, *Hook, line, and sinker* what she told him was true, but the money she had with her was from her account, it wasn't the kind of amount she always had on her or within easy reach.  
  
She only had three thousand an fifty dollars left in her account after withdrawing the cash for their road trip, the money she usually carried around was a twenty.  
  
Every last cent she'd ever spent or saved was a result of hard work and temporary jobs on Rogue's part, she hated barrowing money from people and had never asked for a loan in her entire life, whatever she had she'd earned.  
  
"Ah know what you're thinking, Swamp Rat, and Ah know what kind of experience you've had as a thief, but if ya try to hack into my account, Ah'll kill you" she gave him a dead serious expression that, for once, Remy seemed intimidated by.  
  
Rogue couldn't hold in her laughter, Gambit raised his eyebrow quizzically, "You should have seen your face, Ah haven't seen someone that frightened since Ah threatened Roberto when he first came to the Institute"  
  
He crossed his arms and huphed, "Well, if me being scared makes you laugh, Cher`e, then you scare me anytime, it's worth it to hear that gorgeous laugh of yours"  
  
She glared, "Could ditch the come-ons for one intelligent conversation?" he shook his head, "Got to keep being charming"  
  
"Why?" he gave her a considering expression, then answered "Same reason you keep being Gothic"  
  
A silence fell between the two as Rogue pondered this, then she heard one of her favorite songs start playing and eagerly turned it up, grateful for the distraction.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Ororo was upset, no, that was a complete understatement, she was enraged, "How could Charles let them go like that?! After all the things Mystique has done, he is just going to let them join her!!!"  
  
Lightning crackled in the sky as Storm vented her frustration to Logan, she was pacing angrily in a secluded area in the woods behind the mansion, it was a place that only her, Logan, Xavier, and Hank knew about.  
  
When she had first joined the X-men, Wolverine, her, and Scott were the only students there, she had been taking a walk one day and stumbled into this clearing by accident. Logan had been there meditating and responded harshly to her interruption, though she was unfazed at his intimidating tactics, after she'd calmed him down and they began to talk, a strong bond formed between them and they became extremely close friends.  
  
Now Wolverine was leaning against a tree smoking, letting Ororo's thunderous attitude play it's course, until she started directing her anger at him, "And why did you not make them stay? "'It's okay, they'll be back back'" that is not the Wolverine I know"  
  
Logan threw his cigar to the ground and extinguished it, "Listen, Darlin', the reason I didn't stop them is 'cause I understand them. Stripes is just like me, a loner, a wanderer, she needs a place where she can sort everything out, so she went back to the beginning, it's the same as me goin' back to Canada. As for half-pint, Rogue has always been there for her, she wanted to return the favor"  
  
Storm resumed her pacing, but the skies cleared somewhat and the lightning dispersed.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Jamie sat in the room he shared with Sam, sulking as he starred into space, the other children were downstairs in the Rec. Room, playing video games or whatever else that they could find to exclude him from.  
  
He wished Rogue was here, her and Rhane were the only two who didn't ignore him half the time, and Rhane still brushed him off when she was around the older kids, but Rogue almost always seemed to have time for him.  
  
If the Goth were here now they would be playing tag or a board game or pulling pranks on Roberto, Kurt, and the others, he wouldn't be sitting here feeling lonely and left out.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Jubilee sighed in frustration, she needed serious boy advice and she wasn't about to ask Tabby or Jean, according to her they were both airheads and complete sluts when it came to romance.  
  
Jubilation didn't want or need to know how to wrangle a playboy, she wanted a boyfriend in an equal and honest relationship, *Where's Kitty when you need her?* she thought in exasperation, even Rogue would do, they both had always given her credible tips.  
  
But her friends were off somewhere having fun with three of THE hottest guys on the planet, while she still had to go to school and Danger Room and debate weather or not to tell Bobby how she felt about him.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Kurt was depressed, first it was his best friend, now his sister and Kitty, how many more people were going to leave?  
  
He didn't think he could bear it, he decided to call Amanda and see if she was doing anything, he needed someone to talk to.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Jean glanced into the empty room with a satisfied smile, *No Rogue, no Rogue* her mind sang, she made her way over to the Gothic looking side of the room and began to clean it up.  
  
She had always hated coming in here and seeing how dreadfully decorated Rogue's side of the room was, dark and depressing, "Well I'll soon fix that" and she hummed while she continued to reshape the area she was working on.  
  
"What are you doing?" Jean jumped in surprise and turned towards the door to find Warren Worthington III standing there, he was another reason why Jean wanted to get rid of Rogue, the millionaire with wings was absolutely gorgeous.  
  
But does he pay any attention to her? The perfect one? No, he's too busy with his crush on Rogue, it made Jean shiver when she thought about it, how could anyone like that hideous mistake to the world, more than her?  
  
"Oh, Warren, I was just tidying up the room a bit" she pulled her innocent good-girl smile.  
  
"Sure you were, that's why you have a trash bag and are shoving all of Rogue's things into it" he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "I think you should leave before I tell Wolverine and Storm what you were trying to do"  
  
Jean's smile wavered, it took all her ability to keep calm, *So he wants to play it that way, alright*, "Warren, you don't know how long I've had to put up with that devil, her second day at the Institute I caught her smoking weed, she threatened to kill me if I told anybody, she pulled a knife on me and it was so horrible" she inserted fake sobs for good measure.  
  
"She hated me, I don't know why, I tried to be nice but then she started beating me, I went to the Professor but no one did anything about it. But she's gone now, I can finally relax, get on with my life" crocodile tears spilled down her cheeks, but the only thing on her mind was *I hope this doesn't ruin my make up, ugh, the things I go through for attention*  
  
Warren didn't bite, in fact, he started laughing, "You really expect me to believe that? That's rich, Red, nice acting, I'm gonna go have a talk with Logan"  
  
Jean gaped at him in astonishment, Scott would've eaten that up in a millisecond, *Okay, so he's not as stupid as the other guys I've dealt with* the telepath's jaw clenched dangerously, "I'm willing to cut a deal, I'll never touch Rogue's things again if you don't tell anyone about this, I will not allow my reputation to be tarnished"  
  
Angel ignored her, "Don't you have cheerleading practice this week? I'm pretty sure Logan'll keep you on maintenance duty long enough for you to miss that and whatever other social events you have planned"  
  
Jean glared, "You wouldn't", he smirked, "Watch me"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda laughed, it was a genuine, one of a kind, laugh, her first laugh in what seemed like an eternity. St. John loved her laugh, and loved the fact that he had made her laugh, he had been telling her about one of his many ventures under Magneto's employment, it was when he'd made Sabertooth particularly mad by 'accidentally' burning a patch of his fur off during a mission, Creed had been so angry that he would've slit Pyro's throat if Magneto hadn't tugged on the hairball's leash in time.  
  
They were currently parked outside a grocery store in a town John had already forgotten the name of, Rogue and Remy had gone in to get the stuff they needed this time, Peter and Kitty had fallen asleep about an hour ago. It was about five-thirty pm. they would need to check into a hotel soon, then they'd go clubin'.  
  
John grinned, he couldn't wait to hit the dance floor with Wanda.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
"....And Kitty loves these, and we'll need this and this, hmmmm" Rogue trailed off, as she came to the end of the caned food isle, an exhausted Remy leaning against an overloaded cart behind her.  
  
"Please say that's all, Cher`e" Gambit begged breathlessly, Rogue had gone like Quicksilver on pixie sticks ever since they'd entered the store a little over an hour ago, she'd been grabbing stuff off shelves at lightning speed and tossing them in the shopping cart that Remy was pushing in her wake, this was the first time she'd paused.  
  
"Quit your whining, Swamp Rat" she put her hands on her hips and shifted her weight to her right side, thinking. Then without warning she took hold of the end of the cart and yanked it forward, causing Remy to lose his balance and stumble, barely managing to avoid falling. "Yea, Ah think that's all we'll need" Rogue called to him, not bothering to turn around as she made her way to a cash register.  
  
Remy sighed, "Thank God"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda and Rogue exchanged mischievous smiles when they arrived at the hotel, a hyper Remy and St. John in tow, a sleepy Kitty and Peter lagging behind.  
  
"Your boys' room is right next to ours" Rogue said, handing Remy the key, "We'll change and then head out" she shut the door before Remy could complain about the boarding arrangements, *A guy would have to be gay if Ah was gonna let him sleep in the same room with me*  
  
*But you broke the poor man's heart* a mock saddened voice echoed in response to her mental comment, *HA, the only way to accomplish that would be to actually take the organ out of his chest and tear into a million little pieces* she bit back.  
  
"I doubt Kitty will be joining us" Wanda commented, motioning to the bed where said person was curled up in a peaceful slumber. Rogue couldn't help but be amazed at how angelic the girl looked when she was sleeping, so unburdened and untainted, so young, *She's so innocent, why can't everyone be like that all the time? Why can't life be less complicated?*  
  
*It is* Mesmero responded, *Life is simple, people create their own complications. They want to make themselves believe that there is no end to all the tragedy that goes on in this world, they are blind to answers that are right in front of them, they build on the things that are already there, they can't bring themselves to step back and start at the beginning, untangle all the messes they've created*  
  
Rogue sighed deeply, then turned to her bag and began pulling out the clothes she planned on wearing tonight, Wanda was just putting the finishing touches on her outfit.  
  
The Scarlet Witch was wearing a blood red shirt that had black sleeves coming down and flaring out at the wrists, she also harbored a pair of black bellbottoms that hung low enough on her hips to expose an inch of skin at her middle section. She slipped a few silver rings randomly on her fingers and began to reapply her makeup, which was blazing red lipstick and black eye shadow.  
  
Rogue changed into a black shirt and put a dark, purple, see through top over it. She tugged on a pair of black silk gloves that ended at her elbows and then put on her usual black stretch pants which also hung low enough to expose skin, but the see through top covered that well enough so she didn't have to worry about absorbing someone if they brushed up against her.  
  
She walked into the open door of the bathroom as Wanda came out, Rogue wiped of her makeup and studied her reflection in the mirror, *Maybe Ah shouldn't wear any tonight, it's not like anyone's gonna notice* she thought back to Logan and Remy's reactions the first time they'd seen her without her makeup, *Okay, so they might notice, but who cares? Ah don't see what the big deal is* so she decided to go clean-faced.  
  
"Ready?" she asked Wanda with a smirk as they stood in front of their closed door, "Lets show those boys a good time" her friend answered, and with that, they headed for the guys' room.  
  
Rogue knocked on the door, "Ya'll decent?" she called, a few muffled voices came from inside, then a loud THUD-BOOM sound, was followed by and audible string of French cuss words.  
  
Wanda and Rogue both rolled their eyes and Rogue risked opening the door, St. John was laughing like crazy at a shirtless Remy, who was currently lying in a mess of shaving cream and water. Rogue shook her head as if she were disgusted by the act of immaturity, but neither girl could hold back their own laughter at the sight.  
  
Remy grunted and got up, the girls gained their composure, "What happened?" Wanda asked, Gambit had a mock bitter expression on his face, "I was shaving and tripped on the dresser's leg when I tried to reach the door first. When I fell the bottle of shaving cream got knocked over along with Johnny's water, I landed on the shaving cream can and charged it and the water spilt"  
  
Rogue smirked, "Why didn't ya shave in the bathroom?" "John was already in there, we were racing to see who could get done first" Remy answered pathetically, the girls tried unsuccessfully to fight off another round of laughter.  
  
"Then I guess we'll just have to wait in the car for you guys. And keep it down, you're going to wake Peter up" Wanda waved her hand towards the sleeping Colossus as the girls exited the room and headed for the elevator.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
It was twenty minutes later when Pyro and Gambit came out of the building, Remy was dressed in a tight black shirt and pants that defined every muscle on his athletic figure, his trademark trench coat complimented the simple apparel nicely. Rogue immediately knew if she didn't find something else to concentrate on while they were at the club, there was a high possibility of dangerous results.  
  
St. John wore a baggy reddish T-shirt that had a wild black design zig- zagging across the front and back, he also had on a pair of black cargo pants, with the same wild design only in red. Wanda smiled as she gave him the once over, "Not too bad" she observed, Rogue nodded in agreement and shifted nervously as the guys approached and climbed in the car.  
  
Rogue backed out of the parking lot and threw all her attention into driving, *Oh no you don't, young lady, I will not have you brush him off because of some petty fear* Mesmero stated.  
  
*Ah don't want him to get hurt, Mes!* *He knows of your mutation, he wont try anything that you don't approve of*  
  
Rogue gave a mental sigh, so she had no excuse except for being afraid for Remy's saftey, but in her book that was good enough to stay away from him.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
The music was booming at ear-bleed volume, the dance floor was crowded, Rogue made her way through the growing mass of bodies and thankfully spotted an empty table.  
  
Immediately after they sat down Remy asked Rogue if she wanted to dance, but before she could answer, a boy about nineteen with bleached-blond, close cropped hair and piercing blue eyes, stepped up to their booth and tapped Rogue on the shoulder.  
  
The Goth girl glanced up and her jaw-dropped in shock, the boy mirrored her expression, "Marie!"  
  
Rogue's mind was racing and her heart quickened it's pace, she barely managed to stammer out the guy's name, "Cody?"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Surprise, surprise. I know adding Cody is so unoriginal, but he is vital to this fic, well, sort of, at least he's vital to having Rogue and Remy get together)  
  
J.D.: I love you all for the great reviews, and my muse loves you.  
  
St. John: I'd love 'em even more if they got me away from you.  
  
J.D.: Quit whining, wait you just gave me a good idea for my next fic.  
  
St. John: Oh fantastic, here we go again...... 


	15. Letting go

(A/N: My deepest apologies for not updating sooner, I have a serious case of writer's block)  
  
Thanks for all reviews:)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Remy raised an eyebrow and glanced at Rogue, she seemed completely and utterly shocked. He gently shook her shoulder, bringing her back to reality, "Cher`e, you know this man?" Rogue nodded blankly. "Marie?" instantly Rogue's attention was on Cody again, "Uh....Excuse us, we need to talk" he clasped Rogue's gloved hand and lead her onto the dance floor.  
  
They pushed their way through the crowd and finally came to an exit, Cody opened the door and the two stumble into an alleyway. Rogue pulled her hand out of his and stepped away from him a little, Cody leaned against a wall and they locked gazes for a long period of silence.  
  
Rogue spoke first, "So...You probably think Ah'm a freak" Cody's eyes widened and he shook his head violently in denial, "Marie, Ah could never think of ya' as a freak. You have a gift, that's cool", Rogue bowed her head down, when she looked up again there were tears in her eyes, "Ah'm sorry, Ah didn't mean ta'" her accent came out thick with emotion.  
  
Cody covered the distance between them and wrapped his arms around her, she stiffened, afraid he might touch her skin, but then relaxed into his embrace, "Ah know you didn't. Shhhh, it's okay" Rogue realized just how much she'd missed her best friend, she tightened their hug.  
  
After a while they pulled apart and Cody slung an arm around her shoulders, "Well, seems to me like we have a lot of catching up to do, and this ain't exactly the ideal place to do it" Rogue smiled, "The others are gonna be so mad at me if we leave now", "That's alright, we can cover the basics over a few drinks and a couple of dances"  
  
They walked back into the club and had to shout above the music while going towards Rogue's table, "No one knows my real name. They call me Rogue" Cody grinned, "Ah like it, it suits you better" he replied.  
  
Rogue noticed Remy was the only one left at their booth by the time Cody and her got there, the Cajun looked as if he'd just been about to come after her. Cody slid in across from Rogue and Remy instantly started in with the inquiries, "Who's he?" Gambit asked, jutting a thumb in Cody's direction.  
  
"Remy, Cody. Cody, Remy" Rogue introduced, "Cody was my best friend growin' up in Mississippi. He was also the first person to get a taste of my powers" Cody grinned, "She's such a great kisser she knocked me off my feet" Rogue blushed slightly and giggled. To say the least Remy was surprised, he'd never heard Rogue giggle, especially when the topic was her "curse".  
  
He instantly went into jealous mode, why didn't she lighten up like that around him? Or anyone else for that matter? She sees this guy for the first time in, what, six years, and she's acting like a kid.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue and Cody spent the rest of the night talking and dancing. the Goth hardly paid any attention to Remy. But after a few hours St. John had staggered over to them supported by Wanda, "We need to get him back to the hotel" she said with a laugh, "He's dead drunk" "I ain' dunk, luv" the Aussie slurred, "Sure you aren't" Wanda retorted.  
  
Rogue smirked and tossed Wanda the keys, "We'll be with you in a minute" the Scarlet Witch twirled the key ring on her finger twice before clutching it in her hand and turning away from her friends, "Take your time" she called before disappearing into a sea of bodies.  
  
Rogue, Remy, and Cody got up, "Where are you living now, anyway?" Cody asked Rogue, "Remember Irene?" he smiled, "How could Ah forget?" "We're staying at her ranch outside of New York". He mock pouted, "Well could you move to the one in Caldecott"  
  
"Oh believe me, that would be Louisiana's worst nightmare" she rested her elbow on Remy's shoulder, "The Brotherhood's staying with us" Rogue had told him all about them earlier. Cody patted her head, "You poor baby. By the way, Ah think you should call that Logan guy to stay with you so none of those boys try anything"  
  
"Not that they would or could" Rogue said, Remy caught the hint of sadness in her voice and decided to insert some of his charm, "Don't discredit yourself, Petite, you've got half the male population wrapped 'round your finger" Rogue retreated from resting against him long enough to punch him playfully in the arm, "One day that forky tongue of yours is gonna be yanked out and Ah hope Ah have the pleasure of watching, Swamp Rat"  
  
He smirked and slipped an arm around her waist, "Whatever you say, River Rat" Rogue tried to tug away from his grasp but she was too tired and sagged against him instead, "You're lucky Ah'm full of alchahol, otherwise you'd be in for it"  
  
Cody tipped his head slightly as if he were wearing a cowboy hat, "G'night, Marie. Was a pleasure meeting you Remy. Maybe Ah'll stop by Irene's sometime" Rogue gave him a sleepy wave and Gambit nodded his acknowledgment.  
  
The two trudged towards the exit and made their way to the car, Wanda sat in the driver's seat while St. John slumped on the passenger's side. Remy opened the back door and Rogue and him climbed in.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Kitty thought for a moment before making her next move, she jumped two of Peter's checkers and grinned, "Ready to give up now?" the Russian raised an eyebrow, "Why would I want to do that when I am so close to dominating this match?"  
  
"Like, no way! I am, like, so gonna win" Kitty protested. Just as Peter was about take his turn, the door to the boys' room opened and in walked two drunken teammates, one with hearts in his eyes, the other with stars. St. John barely made it to his bed before falling asleep, Remy glanced at Peter and Kitty with a wicked smile, "Since we seem to be trading roommates, I'll just sleep in Kitty's bed for tonight"  
  
"Rogue and Wanda, would, like, totally flip" Remy smirked, "I know" Kitty rolled her eyes and glared at the Cajun's retreating form, she turned back to Peter "He does have, like, a good idea though, I could sleep in here" Colossus blushed beet red, Shadowcat giggled.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue kicked off her combat boots and laid down on her bed, "Ah can't believe it" she mumbled, "He doesn't blame me" *Now you can move on* *What do mean?* she projected her confusion, *You can finally let go of a part of your past that's been holding you back from living a fulfilled life*  
  
Rogue sat up and frowned, *What?* Mesmero sighed, *Can you not see, child? After what happened with Cody, you were afraid to hurt someone else, you thought everyone you absorbed would hate you just because Cody didn't wake up soon enough to tell he didn't blame you. As a result, your self-esteem fell so low you couldn't imagine anyone ever loving you, and then you blocked people out, not wanting to hurt them. But now you can move past that*  
  
Rogue starred at the floor, he was right. Just then the door opened, Remy leaned against the door frame and grinned, "Kitty wanted to switch roommates" "LEAVE!!!" Wanda and Rogue shouted at the same time, throwing their pillows at him.  
  
LeBeau stumbled backwards from the blow as Kitty phased through him and shut the door in his face, the Cajun pouted, "I tried"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: I'm so sorry if this chapter's corny, I had to force it through my writer's block:( 


	16. semicontrol

(A/N: Now before anyone says anything about Gambit being in Rogue's head and helping her learn to control her powers; yes, I have read Giddy, but my idea for this chapter did not originate from that fic.  
  
Disclaimer (I guess): Anything in here that may seem similar to fore mentioned story, I give all credit to the author of Giddy, who did a wonderful job on that fanfic which I enjoyed immensely and I would not think of purposefully copywriting any work of a fellow author's unless given permission.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue let her mind drift as she watched the buildings of Connecticut pass by. Wanda was driving and St. John was in the passenger seat, leaving Rogue squished up next to Remy in the back. Surprisingly, she didn't feel as uncomfortable with this arrangement as she would have just yesterday.  
  
She had been up all night talking and meditating with Mesmero, he was helping her take the first step in controlling her powers by removing the fear that always kept her from letting people get too close. It made Rogue more confident and less worried, but they still had a little ways to go. "What are you thinking about, Cher`e?" Remy's question broke into her thoughts, Rogue didn't look at him when she answered, "About gaining control of my powers"  
  
"There's somethin' I never would've expected you to say" his tone was neutral; Rogue knew he was trying to be serious. He wanted more information. She debated weather or not to tell him, Mesmero was prompting her to open up. Finally, she proceeded to explain, if only to get Mesmero to be quiet, "Ah've found a way that might help me control my powers. And when that's done, Ah'm gonna go back to the X-men"  
  
Wanda glanced sharply into the review mirror, "No you're not" she stated as if to say the girl didn't have a choice in the matter; Kitty and Rogue gave her a questioning look.  
  
"We'll have a better chance at stopping Mystique if we stay" she explained, and when that's done then we'll form our own group, new and old Brotherhood members, who are a part of the X-men only a different faction living in a different area. We could have our own training equipment and missions"  
  
Slowly, a smile grew on Rogue's face, she liked the idea and could tell Kitty did too. But suddenly Rogue found the flaw in this little plan, "We need some adult structure to keep everyone in line, and Ah don't think the Professor is gonna consider sparin' any of the teachers at the institute. They need everyone they can get at that mad house"  
  
St. John turned in his seat to face them, "Couldn't ya' just divide the X- men? You know, everyone who wants to come with our faction we can recruit, and everyone who wants to stay at the mansion can stay, that way they could have an equal amount of teachers and kids on each side"  
  
Rogue grinned, "Excellent, we can work it out with Xavier but there is still the threat of Mystique. No matter what we do to stop her rampages she's just gonna keep comin' back, that'll make it harder to get Lance and them to join us"  
  
Kitty shook her head, "Like, no it wont. The only reason the Brotherhood is with Mystique is because she has no consistent rules for them to follow and they like their freedom. But if we promise that this new faction of the X- men is, like, less strict and doesn't have Cyclops on the team, then they'd probably jump at the chance to get away from her"  
  
Rogue noticed Gambit pull out a card and watched apprehensively as he played with it with his fingers, she didn't want him accidentally blowing up her car and everyone in it, "I don't know, Petite" the Cajun commented, "I've had enough experience with gambles like this: it's a sixty/forty chance that they'll join and the odds aren't in your favor"  
  
Rogue snatched the card from his hand and gave him a pointed look before saying, "Ah know the Brotherhood better than ya'll, Ah had to live with them for two years, not to mention Ah've absorbed all of them at least once. Pietro's a definite yes, he'll be the easiest because of what happened to Magneto, Fred's a maybe, Todd's a yes, Lance is a no"  
  
Kitty frowned upon hearing this but didn't protest, Rogue knew what she was talking about after all. After a moment, Rogue sighed, "You know, it'll be really weird, having the X-men, the Brotherhood, and the Acolytes on the same side. For a while, there wont be anyone to fight against and none of us are used to that. Although Ah'm sure Mystique will come up with a new team, then we'll have our hands full"  
  
Gambit grinned, "The bigger the challenge, the better. 'Sides, you wont have to worry about fighting a new team, Cher`e, I will protect you"  
  
Rogue snorted, "For one, Ah can take care of myself. For two, you wont be very useful once Ah've broken your rib cage for insulting me"  
  
Remy was dumfounded for a moment, he gaped at Rogue, "How did I insult you?"  
  
She rolled her eyes, "By suggesting that Ah need protection! What have you been taking lately?" he tilted his head as if he were seriously considering her question.  
  
Then he lost the concentrative look and grinned, "The femmes" Rogue bopped him in the back of the head.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Mystique glared at Destiny from the entrance of the kitchen. The old Brotherhood (minus Pietro) was scattered around in the living room, doing what they do best: sulking. And her new, more powerful team, was off God- knows-where, doing God-knows-what, when she wanted them to be here training their asses off for her evil plans.  
  
"Why did you just let them leave like that?!" Raven exclaimed, her eyes narrowing on her life-long friend; Irene hardly flinched at the harsh tone Mystique used, being accustomed to it by now, "They are not prisoners, they may come and go as they please" the older mutant raised her head and seemed to stare out the tiny kitchen window.  
  
"Besides, you have already lost the girls and your scheme has failed. They will not comply to helping you destroy Charles Xavier and his X-men" Mystique was furious, in all the years that she had known Destiny, the fore- seeing mutant had never spoken so boldly towards her, not even about a vision. "When did you see this?!" Raven demanded, slamming her fist on the table, Irene sighed, "The moment they pulled onto the road"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Pietro began returning to the world of consciousness, but wished he could have slept the next seventeen years of his life away as the memory of what had happened to his father automatically replayed in his mind.  
  
It hurt like hell to think about the events of Magneto's death, but Quicksilver vowed he was done with his grieving. Wanda had been right.  
  
Eric Lensheer was not a father. And it had taken Pietro this long to accept that fact, although, subconsciously, he had known the truth much earlier.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Warren Worthington dipped and flew through a clear, morning sky. He stretched his long, feathery, wings, which looked magnificent in the son's warm glow. He took a deep breath and savored the free, unattached feeling of flight.  
  
He loved everything up here; no matter what, nothing could go wrong when he was flying, nothing.  
  
He let his thoughts drift to Rogue and his already wide grin broadened. Sure, he knew if she wanted to start a romantic relationship with anyone, it was going to be that Cajun Playboy, but he still had feelings for her and always would.  
  
*As long as she's happy* he thought, *And as long as we're still friends so I can be there for her* he smirked as he did another barrel roll, "If Gambit ever hurts her, I'll go after him with knives and fists"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda pulled into a hotel parking lot mid-afternoon and they paid for two rooms on the third level of the four-story building. As soon as everyone got settled in, Wanda, Kitty, Remy, St. John, and Peter decided to do some sight-seeing and asked rogue if she wanted to come, "No, thanks" she said, hoping to get some time to herself.  
  
She wanted to continue learning how to control her powers, "I'll stay with you, Cher`e" Remy offered. Rogue was about to reject his suggestion when Mesmero piped up, *Tell him he may stay*  
  
Rogue frowned, *But he'll distract me*  
  
*He might be just the thing we need to helping you gain control* was the response. *How?* Rogue asked, confused, *Trust me* he answered. "Fine" Rogue said out loud, much to Gambit's delight.  
  
When the others left Rogue sat cross legged on the floor and motioned for Remy to do the same, "The only reason Ah'm alowing you to stay is because Ah think you can help me control my powers" Remy grinned, "I get to be your test subject?"  
  
Rogue rolled her eyes, *I'm two seconds away from shoving him out that door* Mesmero ignored her mental sarcasm, *Tell him to close his eyes and you do the same* she gritted her teeth, I am going to regret this*, "Close your eyes" she said with immense hesitation.  
  
Surprisingly, he obeyed without a coy reply to her order. She closed her own eyes and asked Mesmero what to do next, *I am going to take you both into the depths of your psyche. We will proceed from there* Rogue felt herself being pulled into her own mind, it was the same sensation as when Mesmero had first talked to her in her head.  
  
Rogue found herself in her filling place, but this time all the memories were neatly organized and shuffled away. She also noticed that her wall, which was keeping the psyches of the people she absorbed from mixing with her own, seemed stronger than ever; now, though, there was something different about it.  
  
"I added it last night" Mesmero said, coming up beside her. Rogue's gaze was so transfixed on the medium-sized, glowing panel, planted in the direct center of her wall, that she didn't notice Gambit or his utter shock at being transported to such a place.  
  
"What's it for?" she asked the telepath, he smiled, "When you have learned to control your powers, you will be able to use this panel to harness the power of the people you absorb and prolong the time you have their abilities. However, eventually their powers will fade but you will still have them longer then you are able to now"  
  
Rogue nodded, "Ah've got a feeling that is going to come in handy soon" Mesmero turned towards an occupied Remy and motioned for Rogue to acknowledge the Cajun. He was ruffling through her mind's filling cabinet. Rogue's eyes widened and she rushed at the card boy, pushing him back and shoving the file drawer closed, "Don't you dare!" she exclaimed, "Ah don't give a damn if you're a thief, my memories are strictly off limits"  
  
She was about to give him an advanced course in pulverisation, but Mesmero intervened, "You may beat him up latter, Rogue. At the moment we have more important business to attend to"  
  
The Goth folded her arms across her chest and leaned against her filling cabinets, still giving Remy a death glare. Gambit got a good look at Mesmero for the first time and his first instinct, upon recognizing former enemy's profile, was to place himself between the man and Rogue while preparing to attack.  
  
"You need help getting this guy out of your head, Cher`e?" Remy asked, "Of course not" Rogue answered, "He's the one that's been helping me learn to contol my powers and block out the people Ah absorb"  
  
Gambit looked confused, but before he asked another question, Rogue explained, "After Ah absorbed Mes, he told me about how he had been under mind control and was barely aware of his own actions when he did Apocalypses dirty work. Ah actually saved him from himself by taking him from his body and now he wants to return the favor"  
  
Gambit was extremely skeptical, but he trusted Rogue's judgment. However, one wrong move from Mesmero and the Cajun would make sure that there was hell to pay.  
  
"Now" Mesmero said, "Gambit, I want you to use your powers and charge an object. The kinetic energy can simulate a life force which Rogue's mental embodiment should be able to retain into her mind like a psyche"  
  
Remy produced a card and was surprised when he found he could use his powers, then Rogue took off her glove and touched the card, concentrating. Her mental form began to glow, than a beam of white energy lifted from her and floated towards her wall, automatically being sucked in with no need for any open and close passage.  
  
The glowing around her faded and she waited for further instructions from Mesmero, "Got to the wall and place your hand on it" she did as she was told, "Reach out with your mental senses and try to locate the force you just absorbed" it took a while, but Rogue finally found what she was looking for.  
  
A crackling, kinetic energy that sought out more particles to attach to and fulfill it's purpose of exploding. It was almost as if the energy sensed her there, and it came towards the wall, looking for a way to reach the beings on the opposite side and return to it's counterparts.  
  
Rogue pulled with her mind and felt the energy flow back into her. She held up a hand and used her telekinesis to return it to the card. Remy retracted the power once it was returned.  
  
Mesmero smiled, "Now you will be able to put psyches back in their original occupants. But you must try this on a real person a few times before you are able to return the psyche quickly enough in order to not absorb anything; you see, when you return a psyche, your mind thinks it is because you have taken as much information from that person as you need, so you will be able to touch that person without hurting them.  
  
"But you must be careful, because I am not sure how long it will last. When you have mastered the skill, though, then you will not even need to concentrate on it. When you begin to extract a psyche that you don't want, your mind will not go through with the process. This way, you only absorb the people you want to absorb"  
  
Excitement bubbled up in Rogue, she could not believe she was so close to controlling her powers. Without warning, she raced towards Mesmero and hugged him, mumbling a series of thank-yous.  
  
When Mesmero was over his initial shock, he awkwardly returned the embrace, not having been exposed to affectionate displays such as this for longer than he could remember.  
  
"It was my pleasure, dear Rogue" he responded as she pulled back, "Are you ready to go back to the conscious realm?", she nodded, going to stand beside Remy as they opened their eyes in the physical world.  
  
Rogue and Gambit stood, then, much to Remy'surprise, Rogue hugged him like she had done to Mesmero. Not being one to pass up rare (almost non-existent in this case) opportunities, he wrapped his arms around her and held her as close as possible.  
  
"Thanks for helping me" she said, then ducked out of him vigorous embrace much too soon for Gambit's liking.  
  
When Rogue registered the fact the she had just hugged Gambit, she gave and internal groan, *That was one, stupid impulsive action* she thought, even while a tiny smile graced her lips and she turned quickly to hide it.  
  
*It felt good, though* she realized, not because of his handsome features and great smelling cologne, but because, for the first time in what seemed like forever, Rogue felt truly and deeply loved.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Mystique floored the gas pedal as she tore down the long stretch of deserted country road. She didn't care what Destiny said, she was not going to loose the chance at having some of the most powerful mutants in the world under her leadership. She was going to hunt them down and demand they come back with her.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: I know, my inevitable late updates are beginning to annoy you:) Blame it on the muse.  
  
St. John: (walks in waving a contract) Uh-uh, Shiela, right here in your own official muse contract it states: "No author shall be able to blame sources of entertainment on dry spells or lack of inspiration"  
  
J.D: Give me that (glances over conveniently highlighted section, than tosses paper in shredder) Just another one of your lame attempts at forgery, so I can blame you all I want.  
  
St. John: (slipping into depression) After all I've done for you, mate. (big, sad, irresistible puppy-dog face)  
  
J.D: I will not give in, I will not give in, I will not....(sigh), There should be a law against endearing, emotional displays. Alright, my muse has nothing to do with my tardiness.  
  
St. John: (pats author's head) Good girl.  
  
J.D: (growls with resentment) 


	17. A fight and a kiss

(A/N: You reviewed? Even after all this time? Thanks!:)  
  
St. John: Not that she deserves your praise. And my thanks to Panther Nesmith, finally a muse gets some support.  
  
J.D: (walks over to the exceptionally amazing lighter collection on nearby shelf) Which one shall I get rid of first? Oh! How about this one? (picks up one of the fancy little trinkets)  
  
St. John: I take it back! Late updates build suspense, so their good, ya.  
  
J.D: That wasn't very convincing, but it'll do. Now, what should we do for this chapter?...  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda sat across from St. John in a small restaurant near the hotel. Peter and Kitty had gone to an art gallery further into town and left the excitement-lacking rebels to mope with boredom.  
  
"I'm chaos deprived" Pyro complained, flicking his lighter off and on, Wanda watched the tiny flame that popped up every other time and mentally agreed with him. There wasn't very much destruction they could cause in this town, it wasn't very big and there weren't enough people to terrorize for their liking.  
  
Just then, a group of girls with blond hair and matching mini-skirts, walked in, "Hey, Danny" one of them greeted a tall, muscular man with close cropped hair, who was standing behind the cash register.  
  
The man, who really looked more like a teenager working an after-school job, smiled at the girls that Wanda already decided had a non-existent IQ, "Hey, Lee Ann" the girls shared a knowing look, then broke into giggles.  
  
Danny shrugged, having been left out of the silent joke, "What?" he asked, Lee Ann rolled her eyes playfully, Wanda and Pyro exchanged gagging faces.  
  
"Everyone calls me Lee, now, it's my "punk" name" Wanda laughed out loud at that, there was no way in hell this girl was punk, it was probably just some ditzy phase.  
  
Lee Ann and her friends turned to glare at whoever it was that care mock them, when their eyes narrowed on the Scarlet Witch, their faces hardened, "And exactly what is so funny?"  
  
St. John and Wanda grinned, seeing their opportunity to have a good time. Wanda stood and walked until she was a foot or two away from the girl, "You are far from being a punk, you're just copying some celebrity who idiotically said that punk was the latest thing"  
  
The girl flipped her hair ignorantly, "I am punk to the core, and punks don't follow the latest trend"  
  
Wanda smirked, "Punks don't use the word punk, either" she took a look at the girl's clothing, "And they don't wear mini-skirts and tank-tops."  
  
Lee Ann was about to throw a punch at the Scarlet Witch, but Wanda expertly evaded it and readied herself for a few blows of her own. Before long, a fistfight broke out.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
That was it. Rogue could not take one more ounce of Remy's charm. She needed to breath. Noticing that Rogue was about to take off, Gambit got up and blocked her path, "Uh-uh, Cher`e" he said, wagging a finger at her, "You need to practice your new skill" he was referring to how she could put psyches back in their original bodies and then be able to temporarily touch the person she absorbed.  
  
"Cajun, if you don't get out of my way this instant, Ah will make sure that tongue of yours is never able to form words again!" Remy was unfazed, "Don't you want to see what it feels like to touch, Petite?" he asked.  
  
Rogue sighed, she did want to see what it felt like. But through past hour she had spent with Remy in the room, thinking on how nice it would be to have skin-to-skin contact, her mind always drifted back to the guards that had raped her.  
  
*Gambit would never do anything like that to you* Mesmero consoled, *I know, Mes, but for some reason, that's not making me feel any better at the moment* *You could at least try after all our hard work*  
  
She pondered this for several minutes before meeting Remy's gaze and nodding, "Alright, Swamp Rat, we might as well get it over with" she ignored the glint in his eyes and took off a glove, putting her bare hand to his cheek.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
The restaurant was a complete disaster by the time Wanda and Pyro stepped out the door, leaving behind bruised and beaten cheerleaders along with some customers who had tried to intervene during the battle.  
  
The two mutants didn't have one scratch on their bodies, though, when the fight ended, "That felt good" Pyro said. Wanda glanced around for more trouble, unsatisfied, but knowing there was no other way to reek havoc in this small town, "Let's go find Peter and Kitty" she mumbled, continuing on their way.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue felt a headache come on as she finished returning Gambit's psyche and waited as he opened his eyes.  
  
The first thing Remy did once awake, was get off the floor and help Rogue to her feet, drawing her close, "Feel free to do whatever you want" he said with expected enthusiasm.  
  
Rogue felt awkward and timid doing this, however, she swallowed her fear and took Remy's bare hand in hers, finding the skin warm and inviting. She marveled for a while about the sensation of touch, tracing his palm with her thumb and rubbing the back of his hand.  
  
She had the sudden urge to feel his hand against her face, but resisted, fearing that he might take that as some sort of sign to go ahead and do whatever things were running through his mind at the moment.  
  
Instead, Rogue found herself pulling away. Remy gave her a concerned look, "Ah" she tried to answer his unspoken question, "Ah feel weird doing this" she rubbed her arm nervously, "Its doesn't feel right"  
  
Remy gave her a gentle smile, "That's why you need to do it a lot, Cher`e, so you can get used to it" he closed the distance she had put between them and cupped her face with his hands.  
  
Rogue gave him an astonished look, instinctively moving to get away, then remembering she could touch him and relaxed a little, enjoying having him so near and not having to be afraid of her power.  
  
"Besides, I wouldn't do anything that you didn't want me too" Rogue new he was being sincere and averted her gaze, thinking of what to do next; before she could stop herself, she asked, "And if Ah wanted you to kiss me?"  
  
He leaned his face in until their lips were inches apart and Rogue's heart began to beat faster than normal, "If you really wanted me to, than I would" he whispered. Their mouths met and Rogue had to wrap her arms around his neck to keep from giving into her weak knees.  
  
She never imagined how amazingly sweet such a thing could be, and she reveled in the sensation while Gambit's arms moved to encircle her waist, both of them practically intoxicated with each other.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
It took Mystique the entire afternoon with unfriendly interrogation of people who claimed they saw which direction the new Brotherhood had gone, before she finally wound up in some no-name town a day's drive from Connecticut.  
  
She checked into a hotel and tried to sleep. She really didn't know how she was going to force the teens to come back with her, she just knew she had to. It was the only way she would ever be able to top Xavier, and at the moment that was all she wanted.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: I know this is a really bad time in the story to tell you this, but I'm leaving tomorrow for a few days and I wont be able to update till I get back. I'm really sorry, but my parents won't let me stay behind) 


	18. A talk and poison lips

(A/N: Reviews! Me loves ya'! I'm actually glad I got back to updating this fic. Thanks for all the reviews. St. John has been grumpy ever since we got back, so he wont be making any sarcastic comments before this chapter. Too bad (insert sarcasm here, lol)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Mystique got to Connecticut by eight the next morning. She hadn't slept a wink the night before and her temper was on the verge of flaring to it's fullest. She was beyond ready to bring this trip to and end.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue woke up hugging a pillow to her chest. She glanced at the standard hotel alarm clock and buried herself deeper under the covers, not wanting to disturb her sleeping roommates.  
  
She was glad that she had closed the curtains to the one window in the room last night, other wise the glaring sun would be casting it's warm rays into the dim room and doing it's job of practically forcing her out of bed.  
  
Rogue thought about what happened after the kiss yesterday, and almost couldn't believe her own memory. When her and Gambit had pulled apart, he'd brought a hand up to trace her facial features and asked in that seductive, husky voice of his, what she wanted to do next.  
  
"Ah just want to be held" she had replied. And so that's what they did. He held her sitting on the bed until the others had come back. Now, Rogue rolled her eyes at the corniness of it all, going over what she said made her feel embarrassed at her girlishness, like she was the character in some cheap romance novel.  
  
Although it had seemed the right thing at that moment, it sounded so dumb to her after replaying the events in her mind. Rogue got up and quietly made her way to her duffel bag so she could change clothes; a good walk would get her over the insecurity she had obtained from her pondering.  
  
The Goth didn't make it five steps down the hall before an arm was placed around her shoulders and a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks, "Good morning, Cher`e"  
  
Rogue caught the frustrated groan before it could escape her mouth, she turned towards the Cajun and was met with piercing red eyes that still stunned her even after being around him for so long.  
  
His smile was flattering and flirtatious, and Rogue was bombarded with the memory of his lips on hers, and how loved she had felt in his arms. She realized that there was no way she would ever be able to second guess herself about her feelings for him anymore, she couldn't keep rejecting him after they got close, she needed to live up to this one.  
  
"Morning, Swamp Rat" she said, but her tone was one of happiness at having him near her. Remy grinned like a boy who had just made up with his best friend, "So, want to experiment with your powers more?"  
  
Rogue grunted with embarrassment, "Uh...maybe latter" if it was possible, Gambit's mood got even better, "Lets go for a drive, then" he suggested. Rogue shrugged, "Fine. Ah wanted to see what they had in town anyway"  
  
*Liar* she thought to herself, but it would give her time to talk with Gambit and find out exactly where this relationship was headed.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Storm was reading a book at the kitchen table while a breakfast casserole was baking in the oven. She glanced up when Logan came in, "How much longer do you think it will be?" she asked anxiously.  
  
It was hard on her, not knowing if Kitty and Rogue were being taken care of properly, although Ororo knew full well they could take care of themselves, it was just her extensive maternal instinct that kept her worried.  
  
Wolverine poured a cup of coffee and sat down, casually picking up the waiting morning paper in front of him before answering, "I don't know, Darlin'" it was the same thing he had told her yesterday in the study knowing exactly what she was talking about.  
  
Storm returned her attention to her book without much enthusiasm for finding out what would happen to the main character next.  
  
But as she continued reading, she began to place more familiar names to the characters in the storyline; it was an odd habit she had acquired after they had gotten more people at the institute in her first few years of being here.  
  
She would pick out the characters that resembled the people in the mansion and imagine their names in place of the author's original titles to the people in his or her book. It was sort of like her own private joke because it made her laugh when the person in the book did something that it's real counterpart did, or vice versa.  
  
Right now, Ororo was reading about a girl who was similar to Rogue, and she could only hope that the story had a good ending.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Jean analyzed the degrading situation she was in. Here ridiculously red hair was pulled back in a ponytail with strands of loose hair sticking out everywhere. Her used-to-be-perfect skin had blotches of dirt on it and her clothes were stained with oil.  
  
She stood looking at a clean X-jet, and her jaw dropped when she caught her reflection on the polished surface. If she was not stunned beyond words, she might have screamed, but instead she dropped a dripping sponge into a bucket filled with soap, turned and proceeded to take of her rubber gloves at an agonizing pace.  
  
When she had completed this task, she decided that one way or another she would get extreme revenge on that Goth girl.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Rogue and Remy were basically parked in the middle of nowhere and had been for almost a half and hour. Remy was shuffling cards in the backseat with his legs propped up, and Rogue had the passenger's seat reclined as far as it would go, sitting cross-legged in the middle of it.  
  
They had talked about the new faction of the X-men and it's pro and cons, they talked about Peter's art and a few other trivial things, mostly because neither of them knew how to broach the subject of them.  
  
*Just ask him* Mesmero prompted, but Rogue was hesitant *I don't think I should, maybe he's not talking about it for a reason* Mesmero sighed in her head, *The only reason is because he is greatly uncertain how you feel about it, and neither of you are using your powers to try to find out what the others' emotions are, so It's up to me to convince you to make the first move*  
  
Rogue realized just how dependent she had become on Mesmero's advice as far as relationships went. She was grateful for his help because of her extreme inexperience when it came to social interaction and he had done a lot for her, the only way she knew how to repay him, was by acting on his advice.  
  
*Okay* she conceded, "Remy?" the Cajun made eye contact and Rogue spilled before she lost her nerve, "Just where, exactly, is this relationship going?"  
  
Gambit got a mischievous glint in his eyes, and was about to respond wittily when Rogue cut him off, "No" she said, "Ah mean, seriously, where are we going?"  
  
Remy turned sincere for the sake of their discussion and answered, "Well, I s'pose we're gonna date on a regular basis, so that technically makes me your boyfriend" as an after thought, he added, jokingly, "And as soon as you're done with high school, we can elope and get married in New Orleans"  
  
Rogue frowned, "Ha, ha, ha" she said mockingly, but then she brightened slightly, "Ah can't believe Ah actually have a boyfriend" she looked Remy over and smirked, "And Ah really can't believe it's you!"  
  
Gambit pretended to pout in hurt at her comment, "You know who really wont believe it" he said, "My entire family, they'll probably be rolling with laughter after I tell them I found the most precious girl in the world to settle down with"  
  
Rogue gave him a worried look, "You seemed to be planning this pretty far ahead, Swamp Rat" Remy grinned, "'Only pick out what you're gonna buy with the money you win, before you win it, if you know the odds are in your favor' my Tante Mattie (A/N: Not sure if I'm spelling it correctly) said that" Rogue smiled, "Oh, you think Ah'm gonna hang around you forever?" he nodded, "I'd bet my last dime on it"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Peter woke to a soft knock on the door. He glanced around the room to get his bearings and noticed St. John still asleep and Remy missing.  
  
Sort of the same thing that had happened on the Acolyte's base numerous mornings in a row, except for the fact that now the guys were sharing a room so he found this out much sooner.  
  
Every morning he had woken up, when he was on Magneto's turf, and gone downstairs to be informed by Sabertooth's early rants that Remy was gone, again, and St. John was either still asleep or hogging the TV.  
  
Peter got up in his T-shirt and boxers, but he had the courtesy to put on a pair of pants, being the gentleman that he was, before opening the door. There stood Kitty, in all her cheeriness, but before Peter could ask what she wanted, the valley girl did something very uncharacteristic and unexpected.  
  
She reached up and pulled Peter into a passionate kiss, which lasted about two seconds before the large Russian passed out.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
'Kitty' morphed back into Mystique who used Sabertooth's form to haul Colossus to her car. She had placed a thin, clear, plastic covering on her lips, which was coated with a liquid drug that would keep her victim unconscious for at least twelve hours.  
  
She knew the kids wouldn't go willingly so this method was most harmless and discreet force she could use, *One down* Mystique thought, *Five to go*  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Okay, so maybe when one of my reviewers asked for more Peter/Kitty, they didn't exactly mean that, but I will try to do more on the couple later on. I know this one was short but I will try to make up for that latter. Thanks for all your reviews:) 


	19. Proposition

(A/N: Oh, hey everybody (ducks into bomb shelter) wait ...No hate reviews, that's good because I am sorry for the wait. Here's the next chapter)  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Wanda woke up with a pounding headache. Her vision was blurry and her body felt like it was under a ton of bricks. She groaned and rolled over right onto the floor with a slight thud, the sound woke Kitty and Rogue up.  
  
"What the hell!" Rogue said, being the first to come to her senses, she was promptly hexed to the ceiling and dropped again, "Don't yell" Wanda moaned, "And while you're at it: don't move, don't talk, and don't breath, I've got a headache the size of Texas"  
  
"Where are we?" Kitty asked, "The last thing I remember was Peter coming into the room and.." the Valley girl trailed off, her cheeks turning bright red and she giggled into her hand.  
  
Rogue chose to ignore this adolescent display and answered the girl's question, "We're back at Irene's, looks like Mystique didn't approve of us going on that road trip. When Remy and I got back to the hotel and found ya'll missing, she somehow managed to tranquilize us. Kitty, hate to break it to you, Hon, but that wasn't Peter who kissed you"  
  
Kitty frowned, then the realization hit her and she abruptly raced for the bathroom chanting "GROSS!" the whole way.  
  
Wanda's headache soon receded and she asked Rogue how Mystique had knocked the rest of them out, "It's a trick she calls 'dead-lock', one of her least lethal. A clear, thin, plastic device with adhesive on one side, so you can stick it to your lips or other body parts, and a coating of liquid knock- out poison on the other. The reason she didn't use it on Remy or me is because we were both together at the time"  
  
Wanda grunted, "I swear, if that woman used it on me I will-" "Don't worry" Rogue cut in, "If she had you would have remembered what happened before you passed out. Ah think she used a tranquilizer on you, probably because you are more defensive about physical space than the other three"  
  
Wanda nodded and then said, "Lets go find out what the boss wants before we decide how to get rid of her"  
  
They headed downstairs to find Pietro, Lance, Todd, and Fred in the living room, "How was your trip?" Pietro asked solemnly, Wanda and Rogue exchanged worried glances, the lost spark in Pietro's attitude was unnerving at best.  
  
"It was good" Rogue replied, taking a seat beside him, "How are you doing?" she asked, he shrugged and that was all the answer she got. Pietro's depression seemed to reflect onto the rest of the boys, Rogue began regretting the fact that she hadn't taken them along, of all the people to reject the rejected she was the last one who should have agreed to leave them behind.  
  
Todd didn't even try to make an advance on Wanda, this was a very bad sign indeed. Just then, the former Acolytes came practically tumbling down the stairs, groggy and irritated at what had happened to them.  
  
Remy took a place beside Rogue on the couch, he was about to lean in closer to her when Pietro, using his power, quickly filled the gap between the couple and glared at Gambit. Everyone seemed surprised at this, "What do you think you're doing?" Remy exclaimed, he got ready to start a fight for the right to sit next to the girl he loved, thinking Pietro was just jealous, but Rogue warned him telepathically not to.  
  
*He just wants my attention, Remy* she explained, *He needs a guardian right now, nothing more*  
  
Gambit mumbled something and sat on the floor as Kitty came downstairs with a toothbrush in her mouth. She was brushing so furiously that Wanda thought her teeth would crack under the pressure of the bristles.  
  
Kitty stormed towards the kitchen and spit into the sink, rinsed her mouth, then came back into the living room. She grabbed Peter by the shirt and kissed him, catching the Russian by surprise.  
  
Then she pulled back just as quickly and nodded in satisfaction, "That's, like, so totally better" Peter's eyes were wide with disbelief, Kitty explained, "I had a bad taste in my mouth" St. John laughed, then turned to Wanda, "Why don't we-" Wanda hit him upside the head before saying "No" very clearly.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
"You have lost them, Raven" Destiny said calmly as the shape-shifter paced before her in the make shift office on the third level of the house, "Your plan can no longer come to pass"  
  
Mystique paused in front of the wall and pounded her fist into it with spontaneous rage, "Everything fails!" She shouted, then, her face fell with silent admittance of defeat.  
  
She knew, from Destiny's predictions, that it would be impossible for her to continue here, which meant she would have to start traveling again, looking for some form of work to keep her occupied before finding another way to defeat Xavier.  
  
Raven really could care less about the X-men or the difference between mutants and humans, sometimes she wondered if anything in life was worth doing, hence her chosen profession of relieving other people of the burden that came with having to continue on in this world.  
  
All, she decided, she really wanted, was to get through this life and have her children get through it, so maybe this was not a total loss.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Latter that afternoon, after Irene came downstairs and told them the unexpected news of Mystique's departure, Rogue figured now was the best time to inform the old Brotherhood of their plans for a new X-men faction.  
  
When that was finished, it was followed by the predicted results, Pietro and Todd said they would join, Lance refused the offer, and Blob just shrugged.  
  
"Okay" Rogue announced, "Ah'll call the Professor and tell him what we want to do"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
When the phone rang at the X-mansion, Ororo beat the rush of teenagers to answer it, "Hello?" she said, "Storm?" Rogue's welcome voice replied, "Tell the Professor Ah have a proposition for him"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: I know it's short but I should be finishing the entire thing up soon, so I hope you enjoyed it. If Mystique seems a little OOC then I'm sorry, but I needed some way to get her out of the picture. Bye) 


	20. End

(A/N: Okay kiddos, last chapter.  
  
St. John: Finally, I can get some sleep.  
  
J.D: Don't count on it, now we have to finish Wolverine's Pub.  
  
St. John: (too tired to cry, gives pleading look to readers instead) Don't let her do it, please, don't let her put me through this again.  
  
J.D: (glares) I hafta and you know it: Ahem. (stands on podium) To all my faithful reviewers, thank you for getting on my case otherwise I would have never gotten over my writer's block. My predictably late updates will hopefully not happen again for a while. And I promise to give St. John his flamethrower back.  
  
St. John: Finally, I can go insane properly.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
~Epilogue~  
  
"Keep it comin', Gumbo, I don't have all day" Logan yelled to a very upset Cajun who was being forced to work alongside Wanda and Roberto in order to get most of the heavier equipment into the partially finished Danger Room being built under Irene's house.  
  
It had taken two months and a truckload of convincing before the Professor had finally agreed on the new faction of X-men.  
  
Their team now included Roberto, Sam, Rahne, Jubilee, Warren, Kurt, a new girl named Betsy, codenamed: Psylock, who was right at home with Rogue and Wanda; another newbie named Bishop, one of Hank's old friends who would be their instructor, and finally, Logan and Storm.  
  
Wolverine had made it his personal duty to give hell to Remy, Peter, and Pyro, who all complained that it was just like living with Sabertooth only now they got maintenance duty on top of death threats every time they even glanced at one of the girls.  
  
When Remy bent over to try and haul another load of heavy computer and metal materials, it wouldn't budge. He tried again and broke out in a sweat. Rogue, who was helping Bishop with the upper level of the DR room, noticed Remy's dilemma and went down to help him.  
  
Instead of using her powers, though, she merely tugged on the pile with her hands and dragged it over to Roberto and Betsy to sort out and put together.  
  
Gambit's eyes widened at her, "You did that without your powers, Cher`e?"  
  
Rogue smirked, "It's all in the balance, Swamp Rat. Plus a few extra outside training sessions didn't hurt" Rogue had been taking extra sessions at least twice a day, she was the only one who enjoyed them in the first place and her muscularity was beginning to show at a fast rate, she had easily surpassed Gambit in a physical endurance test.  
  
Of course, this made for a good joke among the younger students. Remy put an arm around her shoulders and grinned, "Why don't we take a break, Cher`e, I've been itchin' to have dinner at that new restaurant in-"  
  
A low growl quickly cut off his charming tirade and Rogue stepped away from the Cajun, "We still have a ways to go before we can take a break" she told him, "Ah suggest you occupy those wondering hands of yours with getting some more of that equipment up" Remy's face fell.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Meanwhile, on the upper level, Wanda was glaring at St. John vehemently, "C'mon, Sheila" he pleaded, "I didn't mean anythin' by it"  
  
The Scarlet Witch, holding a familiar flamethrower in hand, narrowed her eyes, "'Didn't mean anything by it!' you were slacking off and making images of me in a degrading way with your fire, and the BEST excuse you can come up with is 'YOU DIDN'T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT!!!"  
  
Her yell caused silence throughout the underground area of Irene's house, but Wanda didn't care, she threw down the flamethrower, shattering one of the tanks, and chased after an already running Pyro.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Betsy nodded and turned towards Roberto and Kitty, "That bastard, I hope she messes him up good"  
  
Roberto slowly backed away from the temperamental and moody ninja, Betsy tended to get angry very easily at things like this, and she also tended to take it out on innocent bystanders.  
  
Kitty smiled, "Things like this make me glad that my boyfriend is such a gentleman" Psylock drilled in another piece of sheet metal before replying, "Yeah, men like Peter are hard to come by. Help me program this set of guns"  
  
Betsy wasn't much for talking about guys, a reason why she preferred Rogue or Wanda's company instead of Kitty's.  
  
Shadowcat punched a few codes into the terminal and pointed out the basic things that you had to do to program the system, "So, like, isn't Warren a gentleman too? I mean, he's very polite and mature and all that...."  
  
Betsy sighed internally, Kitty had been getting on her case lately about Angel. It really didn't matter to her because she liked being single, she had always favored work, blood, and the thrill of fights over men. She planned to stay that way.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
Storm observed these things as she helped Logan with another section of the room. The girls seemed to be genuinely happy. And that made her satisfied, because they no longer had to search constantly to find peace. They had it. They no longer needed something more.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
(A/N: Oh look, I did it again. Another fic that I can make a sequel of, no promises people) 


End file.
